The Black Assassin
by SingingBlues
Summary: AU. He was living a life as a regular teenager, until one day when he was suddenly targeted by an unknown assassin. However, strangely after his appearance, weird things started to happen, and fragments of his broken memory began to resurface.DISCONTINUED
1. The Silent Reaper

**Title: The Black Assassin  
Pairing/s: Focusing on Yullen. More pairings in future chapters.  
Rated: T/T+ (Due to violence)**

**Summary: To Allen Walker, life wasn't as luxurious and simple as one could imagine. One day, he was targeted as an unknown assassin came to his home and attempted to kill him. As he slowly investigated behind all of this, he discovered a hidden secret which he shouldn't have known. Yullen.**

* * *

**Prologue**

"P-Please! Don't kill me! I...I will do whatever you want, so please!"

There were shufflings heard in the room. It was so pitch-dark, that you could not even see a single thing. The light available was only the pale moonlight which entered the room through a half-opened window at the corner.

Soft, shaky whispers and draggy footsteps echoed through the air, before a clear thud was heard.

A black shadow was seen on the wall, as the shape of the hands felt against the hard surface of the concrete walls. The shadow was lowered as the person huddered himself together, staring fearfully at the approaching black-figured stranger who was holding something that looked like a sword in one of his hands.

"Please, I beg you! I still have to support a family of six! Please, spare me! He...He cannot do that! I have helped him for many times, why does he have to do this to me?!?"

"He says that you betrayed him, and that you must be killed. I'm only here upon his orders." The said shadow finished as he raised his hand with the sword.

Black crows croaked loudly in the windy night as they flew past the house, black feathers falling from the sky. Gurgling screams were heard next as the stench of fresh blood filled the cold air. The moon gradually changed its position as the light was fading from the room. The shadows were barely visible, as splatters of red crimson blood decorated the plain walls, adding a distinctive colour to it. He had left, and slained the rest along his way. The door closed with a soft click, the atmosphere feeling cold and heavy at that particular moment.

His mission was done.

* * *

_"This morning, a man is found dead in his apartment. His body had many deep slashes, and his throat is severely cut. The police..."_

"I'm so sorry! Yes, I woke up late again."

Loud footsteps were heard as a silver-haired boy was seen running all over the place in his apartment, grabbing the books on the table, before setting off to another room and came out with his bag and the house keys in his hands.

"Sorry? Er well, because I work rather late yesterday so..." He winced, holding the receiver away from his ear for a moment as several shouts could be heard rather loudly. He coughed as he put the receiver back to his ear, pacing down the stairs.

"I'm sorry. But well...I cannot help it right? I know I know, I will take care of myself, so please don't worry about me." He packed his stuffs into his bag, wore his socks, and went to the front door of his house. As he started to unlocked the door using his left hand, his right hand was aiding his feet as he wore the shoes at the same time.

"Yes, I know. I have to rush for it. Well, hope that I will not be caught. Okay I have to go! See you there!" He slammed the door shut from outside and locked it. Turning around, he straightened the school uniform and breathed into the fresh morning air deeply. Opening his eyes, he smiled.

* * *

"Where's Allen? Hasn't he reached school yet?" Miranda asked the olive-haired girl beside her. Lenalee just turned to her, gave her a rather cold stare and said:

"No." Miranda did not know whether she should say anything. Stuck between the dilemma, she laughed bitterly instead.

"I mean, I told him not to take multiple jobs! He is still a student! He needs to focus on his studies, not to earn those stupid money for his damn uncle!" Lenalee slammed her locker shut and pulled out the key hardly, muttering something under her breath. Miranda assumed that she was saying words that she shouldn't hear.

"Well, he cannot help it. We should blame that uncle of his rather than Allen right?" Lenalee just gave a glare.

"I think Allen is just silly. He should not acknowledge that useless drunkard and make his life even more miserable!" The girls had reached the lecture hall as they found the seats they wanted and put their belongings down. More students were streaming into the hall as the morning lesson was about to start.

"But isn't Allen alone in the first place? Maybe having his uncle with him will reduce some loneliness in him." Lenalee stopped what she was doing and just stood there, stunned and astonished. Her violet eyes gradually softened as she sank down onto her seat, sighing.

"Yeah, you are right." She agreed.

"Sorry, I'm late!" They turned around to find Allen walking towards them. Behind him were Krory and Chaoji, who were studying the same modules as them. Lenalee's face colour fell immediately as she paced her way towards him and slapped his head hardly, causing the other to stumble and fall onto the ground, earning many shocked gasps and stares upon them. The olive-haired girl did not feel a bit sorry for what she had done as she placed her hands firmly on her waist, staring fiercely at the one who was groaning softly in pain.

"Lenalee..." Miranda was stumped instantly. Allen looked at her with a baffled face.

"Lenalee?"

"Just what the hell did your uncle demand from you again? Allen, you always come to school on time, and I really mean it. What is the reason for this?"

"Well, that is..."

"What has happened over here?" One of their classmates just came over and asked them in curiosity. He was about to probe more when he saw Lenalee's darkened face and stepped back, deciding that it was best to avoid the situation. Allen stood up to his feet and apologised to the person profusely, before turning his attention to the one who was still in a bad mood.

"Lenalee, you don't need to do this. I know you are concerned about me, but I'm really alright. Really." Allen explained. Lenalee was about to argue further when there was a rather loud cough from the microphone, interrupting the time between them as the lecturer was staring sternly at them. They then realised that everyone had already sat down on their seats with their reading materials on the tables for today's lesson.

"What do you think the two of you are doing, may I ask?" Eyes were on them immediately. Allen panicked instantly as he pushed the girl to her seat and sat down, giving an apologetic look on his face. The lecturer just peered at them for a while before he started the lecture for today. Allen heaved a sigh of relief as he took out the notes from his bag and ruffled his strands of hair behind his ears, listening to the lesson attentively. As he scribbled on his paper, he felt the same pair of eyes constantly glaring at him, making him uncomfortable. He laughed bitterly in his mind.

"Lenalee, can you...don't look at me like that? It's lesson time now." An annoyed huff was heard, before Lenalee turned to the large screen which was showing what the lecturer was teaching currently. Allen just shook his head, wondering what he should do with her when the lesson ended.

_Click._

_Click._

_Click._

Allen's thoughts drifted somewhere, away from the lecture. He entered a dark dimension, as he stood in between the space, wondering why he was here. He looked around, before his hand felt his chest. He felt weird. His right eye had been twitching for a few seconds, and his heart was thumping so hard that it hurt.

_Don't kill anymore._

Who was it?

_In the beginning, you are alone. But...not anymore._

_Because I will be walking with you._

His eyes widened in horror at this familiar voice. At the same time, he heard footsteps coming towards him. His breaths became uneven and his heart was beating faster and harder. Whatever thing was approaching him, he had a very bad feeling about this.

Suddenly, sakura started to appear and fall from above, dancing gracefully with its beautiful petals. Allen looked at the stunning display as he stretched out his hand and felt a petal landed onto his palm gently. A breeze blew by as his hair fluttered up in the moving air, seemed to be gesturing him to a particular direction. His greyish eyes followed suit, as they landed onto a black shadow on front of him.

He looked up. That stranger was tall, and had dark raven hair which was as long as Lenalee's ponytails. He was dressed in full black, and his right hand was holding onto something. Allen's eyes narrowed as he tried to see it more closely, but as he tried to seek further, pain started to attack him as he gripped onto his shirt, gasping heavily.

"Who...are you?"

"Allen Walker!" Allen's eyes snapped open and stood up from his desk immediately, staring at the one who had roared at him loudly from the distance. The Literature teacher, a rather plump lady wearing spectacles at the tip of her nose, was looking at him with much displeasure from the blackboard. The silver-haired boy then realised that he had dozed off during class and looked down dejectedly.

"Allen Walker, come and look for me in the office after class." The school bell rang, signalling the starting of lunch break. The teacher coughed slightly as she adjusted her thick spectacles upwards, dismissing everyone. Allen just sank back onto his seat, feeling both frustrated and tired. Beside him, Lenalee just got up from her seat, walked towards the exit and out of the classroom, not saying a word. Allen stared at her shadow and sighed again.

Everything was started wrongly today.

"Allen, your phone is ringing," Chaoji pointed to the vibrating phone on the table. Allen took it and answered.

"Hello - "

"Where the hell are you, shitty brat?!?" Allen blinked in surprise.

"Uncle?"

"Where's the money?" The glad expression on his face fell immediately. Allen closed his eyes and replied:

"On the table. Are you coming back home to eat - " The sound of the beeps remained in his ears, echoing for a few seconds. Allen took down the phone and stared at it disappointedly for a moment, before he ended the call and put it on his desk. He stood up, and then stared at the piles of notes and books on it.

Suddenly, he had the urge to throw away everything onto the ground, away from his sight. For the first time, he felt so exhausted from studying and working very hard in his life. For the first time, he was doubting his resolve set in his life. He thought that everything he had done was right, but he was not very sure now. Or maybe this was his fate after all.

"Allen?"

"Sorry, I need to go to the washroom." Allen slowly walked out of the classroom and along the corridor, to the washroom. The surrounding area was packed with students. Most of them were happily chatting and getting along with their friends at a corner, while some were idling around the place, nothing to do. It was rather squeezy as he moved through the crowd, trying his hardest not to bump into them, though he wondered why he minded people's reaction to his actions.

Allen pushed the door of the washroom gently as he stepped inside and walked to the sink, turning on the water tap. As the soft splashes of the water gurggled down the basin, he stared at the reflection in front of him, and his gaze was onto the red raw scar at his left eye. His hand started to reach out to it, but stopped hesitantly. He looked at himself carefully.

_Mana! Mana! Don't die! Don't leave me here alone!_

Drips of water trailed down his face and fell from the tip of his chin. The continuous flow of water gradually stopped as the tap was turned off. His eyes never left the mirror. He then wondered why he was still here, alive. He should be dead, yet he wasn't. He survived, yet he had to remember those memories that could not be erased from his existence.

The red slash at his right eye and the raw condition of his left hand were evidence to tell him that it had happened, no matter how he wanted or desired to run away. He hated himself. He really hated himself. Why was he still here when he was not supposed to be around anymore?

Allen covered his face partially with his hand, gritting his teeth tightly. He looked hideous, disgusting, ugly, obscene. No matter how hard he tried to use water and soap to scrub himself, he could not wash away the remains left by that horrible incident. Though everyone comforted him, saying that it was not his fault but an accident, the look in their eyes had betrayed them. The world was full of lies. Everyone lied out of their selfishness, solely for themselves.

He looked down at the remaining pool of water in the sink. Ripples formed as droplets of water from the tap fell onto it. As he looked at his broken reflection, his hand went to it, and his fingers entered the realm. Immediately, his reflection burnt into rages of red fire, hissing and wanting to devour his whole hand. Allen gasped in horror as he redrew his hand and blinked again. It turned back to a normal pool of water.

He stepped back till his back landed on the door of one of the cubicles. Grey eyes softened with pain as he slowly slumped down onto the ground, weeping silently.

It was too much to bear. He just wanted someone to bring him away, away from reality and the nightmare which was haunting him for many years to live, erasing his presence that should not have existed.

Yes, he should not have been here in the first place.

His phone started to vibrate. He took it out listlessly and looked at the screen. His dull eyes shifted its gaze somewhere as he put it on the floor and ignored it, having no mood to answer any calls. He also did not want anyone to disturb him at the moment, not caring whether the class lessons was about to start. Now, he wanted no interruption.

It stopped vibrating. Several seconds later, it beeped again, screaming for its owner to pick it up quickly. Allen glared at the non-living gadget angrily. He took the phone and this time, threw it very far away from him, not wanting to hear anything.

"Bad mood at this point of time?" He stiffened, not realising that someone had already entered the premises. Allen looked up abruptly and saw a rather young student about the same age as him. He had deep red hair and a scarf around his neck. He dressed casually and there was a black eye-patch at where his right eye was.

"What's wrong?" He asked with his eyebrow raised. Allen just sighed softly. Even his accent of speaking sounded rather different from them. Was he a foreigner?

"Anyway, I think you should go back to class. The bell just rang about fifteen minutes ago." Allen's head was still downcast, before he lifted it up hardly, showing an astonished and horrified face.

"What?!?" He scrampered up to his feet, went to retrieve his phone and rushed out of the washroom, forgetting about the student that he had met previously. The silver-haired boy blamed inwardly to himself repeatedly, very sure that he was going to get a very hard punishment from the Chemistry teacher who hated students to be late for his class. He wondered whether praying to God helped in this situation.

"I told you sir! Allen is sick, he is at the infirmary! He is coming back now!" Lenalee was at the front desk, reasoning with the teacher crudely and loudly. The man just frowned as he peered at the clock before peering rather closely to her.

"Infirmary, you say? Then the nurse should have come here long ago and inform me about this. Why is she not here yet?"

"Maybe she has forgotten about it! Maybe?" Lenalee replied immediately without hesitation, not battling a single eyelid. Watching this fantastic show behind were Chaoji, as he turned to his friend and the two exchanged glances. The both of them then nodded in agreement and laughed rather bitterly.

"Guess we should not offend Lenalee next time, do we?"

"Yeah, you are...right. Yeah."

"Sorry I was..." Allen stared at the crowd which was silent immediately at his grand arrival. "...late."

He wished to drop into a hole this instant.

"Allen Walker, you seem to be _better _after a visit to the infirmary, I supposed?" His sarcasm stung as Allen walked up to him and gave him a apologetic look.

"I'm sorry." Was all he could say. The teacher's frown deepened as he turned to the blackboard with the textbook in his hand.

"Go back to your seat." Allen walked back to his seat, feeling many eyes bore into him. As he sat down, he looked at Lenalee, who avoided his gaze and looked elsewhere. He sighed as he turned to the front, not knowing what to do.

* * *

"Well done." The person hidden in the dark sang happily. The dark one reporting to him did not reply.

"Now, this is your next mission, and it is a very important one. Make sure you do not fail." A paper slip and a photo were handed to him. He looked into them.

"Kill the one in the picture, and bring him to me."

* * *

"Yes." Detention for him after school. Allen just sighed in defeat.

"Are you sure you do not need me to accompany you?" Lenalee asked. The latter just shook his head and gestured her to go off first. The olive-haired girl just looked at him with worry before she paced towards the door. At the door, she looked back at him again, before she finally went off. Making sure that she had left, Allen looked at the piles of homework needed to be done and took his pen, ready to start.

"I just hope that Uncle Cross will not be angry with me for coming home late today." He thought.

In the end, he did not even need to think about him. As he opened the door, silence and darkness greeted him. His uncle did not even bother coming to his house for dinner tonight. Allen stepped into the house as he switched on the lightings and put his belongings onto the couch, sinking down onto the soft material next. It was expected, so he was not surprised, but a tinge of disappointment appeared inside him.

His phone vibrated again. He picked it up, and all he heard were shoutings from his working boss before the other party hung up angrily, not allowing him to explain. He stared at his phone before he averted his gaze ahead. Standing up, he walked to the front, taking a photo frame in his hand. In it, were his foster father and him when he was seven.

"Mana, what should I do? I should not have survived. I should have perished with you...right?"

His eyes slowly widened.

_"Allen, no matter what happens, you must not die. Keep walking, and do not look back, because past gives you nothing but grief. You must survive. Understand, my son?"_

"Mana, why do your words appear in me again? When could your words stop affecting me and my decisions in life? I wish to erase them, but yet..."

Tears flowed out of his eyes and streamed down his face. Burying his face in his hands, he cried hardly for the very first time in his life.

* * *

_Allen Walker._

_17 years old, currently living alone._

He walked almost silently along the dark pathway, guided by faint streetlights that flashed through the night. The road was rather empty, as there was hardly anyone around at the moment. Wearing a black cape over his shoulders, he kept his presence hidden from people, allowing himself to camouflage effectively in the darkness. His pace was calm and even, as he turned to his left and started walking past another row of houses in the neighbourhood.

"Kanda," He stopped. There, stood another dark figure standing ahead. Seeing that he had stopped his movement, the other party started approaching him, step by step, before she was just a few centimetres in front of him. Her long ponytails fluttered lightly with the cold night breeze as she closed in to his face, putting a very light kiss on his cold and freezing cheek.

"Didn't I tell you not to do that?"

"Yes, you do."

"Then why do you still do it?" She closed her eyes, and leaned her head towards his chest, feeling the radiating warmth emitting from his body and his wild beating heart thumping vividly in her ears and into her mind. A gush of wind blew past the both of them, as their capes stirred roughly in the air.

"Because, you are important to me."

The latter did not say anything. She then released her embrace, stepping back.

"An order from him again?" He nodded his head. As he was about to leave, something grabbed his wrist rather hesitantly. He turned his head around partially, looking at her.

She did not reply. He was still looking at her, waiting for an answer. Slowly, she began to let go.

"Be safe. I will be waiting for you here."

"You don't need to."

"It's okay, so please go. Call me if you need help." She took his hands and entwined them with hers.

It was dark. She could not see his face clearly, and wondered how he really felt.

* * *

Stars.

He saw stars. Many of them, hanging loosely in the sky. They were small, yet they could produce light that was enough to guide humans through the covered darkness. They could not last long, yet they still did their very best to show people the right way to their houses before daylight arrived. There were so many of them, filling his eyes.

Allen stared outside the window. He had laid on his bed for several hours, yet he could not sleep. The silver-haired teenager closed his eyes, and started to count sheeps. When sheeps didn't help, he counted kangaroos, seeing them jump over a particular fence. In the end, he gave up and opened his eyes, spending the rest of his time looking at the tiny stars twinkling brightly in the sky.

His mind gradually drifted back to the dream he had when he was in class previously. That stranger...he wondered who she was. Was he going to meet her someday? How would she be like? Would she be like his mother, someone who would shower him with the love that he could impossibly have? Or would she be another friend who was going to be important to him?

He sighed, before he closed his fatigue eyes, seeing dreamland ahead of him. It was bright all over the place, as thuds could be heard through the distance. But no matter how he looked, he could not seem to find anyone in this particular dream.

_**Allen, you...are going to die today.**_

A foreign face approached him as a pair of hands lunged towards his face.

"What?!?" His eyes flew open immediately, before he felt something cold and sharp touching dangerously at his throat. His eyes widened.

He was not alone.

* * *

A new story! I have finally published!

Plz review!

-SingingBlues


	2. Death Sentence

Chapter2! Pls review! :)

I'm still currently thinking on how this story should progress. Most likely I would not update it rather frequently, but reviews are certainly welcome if you want to suggest anything regarding my story! :) Pls tell me if anywhere in this chapter is weird! Thanks!

SingingBlues

* * *

Chapter 2: Death Sentence

_**Allen, you...are going to die today.**_

A foreign face approached him as a pair of hands lunged towards his face.

"What?!?" His eyes flew open immediately, before he felt something cold and sharp touching dangerously at his throat. His eyes widened.

He realised he was not alone.

* * *

The air was still as he stiffened on the spot, unable to move. His eyes gazed at whoever was doing this, but it was so dark, he could see no one. He could not even see the weapon which was threatening him, only felt the cold and dark malice which could devour him at this instant. A killing instinct.

He was going to be killed.

"Who are you?" He asked firmly, trying to hide the fear which was overpowering him. He knew that if he let fear control him, he would be dead before the killer could kill him. As he waited for the killer's reply, many thoughts were generated in his quick mind, searching for any solutions. In the end, he decided to use his phone placed at the table beside his bed to call the police.

"So, who are you?" He asked again, his hand started to move. Stealthing cautiously and avoiding to be caught, he fixed his gaze at where the killer supposed to be, while his hand was heading towards the table, which he counted, was about forty centimetres away from his current position. The pale moonlight shone into his room through the window, as the clock ticked softly, telling people that time was slowly slipping away.

A few minutes passed, and nothing happened. Allen did not know whether he should be glad or suspicious about the situation. The killer did not answer his question, nor did he make his final move by slashing his throat with one swift cut. Should he do it, he would have been dead instantly.

Wait, dead? Did he say...dead? Allen's hand stopped in getting his phone back. It slowly went back to its owner's side, as his thoughts started to rewind again. Dead. Why couldn't he think of that? When he was dead, his misery would end instantly, his loneliness and emptiness would end instantly, his build-up exhaustion would end instantly, the constant demands from his uncle would end instantly...everything would end instantly.

And with that, he would go and find Mana, and lived with him forever in the underworld, not disturbed by the troubles circulated in the real world. With Mana, then would he find real happiness in his life. So it would be better if he was dead. Yes, he should be dead. Now.

He silently closed his eyes. He started to think of his friends: Lenalee, Krory, Chaoji, and the mysterious red-haired teenager whom he had met in school. He hadn't forgotten about him, and wanted to know his name. He wanted to make friends with him, but it was all too late. The thoughts changed to an image of a middle-aged man, who resembled of a clown in a circus. Perhaps minutes later, his wish would be granted.

"I'm ready. Kill me," Allen said, having his final resolution. Though he could not see the killer, he was very sure that he was a little astonished at his reply from the slight jerk of his weapon. Cold wind brushed past as he slightly shivered, but remained calm as he waited for his final sentence.

"ALLEN!" It all came too fast. Suddenly, another stranger called his name and appeared out of nowhere, crashing into his room by his window. The killer seemed not to have expected his coming as he redrew his weapon from his throat and faced the new intruder, who interrupted this session. Before Allen could even wonder what had happened, someone grabbed his waist and they just jumped out of the window, their bodies stalling in the midair. The silver-haired boy slowly looked down, his eyes widened in horror seeing that his legs were not touching anything, like they were really flying like birds with wings.

Except that they had no wings.

"Wh-What the hell are you doing?!?" Even before his question was answered, the two of them started to plummet down at a speed which could kill them instantly. Allen looked down at the doom laid for them, and wondered whether he should be happy to be able to die honourably this way.

In the end, he screamed.

"You...it's all your fault!"

"But I thought you want to die in the first place?" That stumped Allen instantly.

"How...how did you know?!?" Who the hell was this person who could even read his mind so accurately?

But now wasn't the time to even think of this, when they are falling to the death's door! Allen wailed, as he struggled and tried to grab something, but it was no use. He looked down, and realised that they only left a few tiny metres before they were slapped onto the floor like flat pancakes. Allen shut his eyes.

Finally, he was going to die. Wasn't this great?

_Thud._

* * *

_Tick._

_Tick._

_Tick._

Was he dead?

_Oi!_

Who...was calling for him?

_Oi, wake up! Wake up!_

Mana? No, it sounded more like a teenager than a middle-aged man. Then, who was it?

"ALLEN, WAKE UP! YOU ARE NOT DEAD!" He woke up immediately, having the feeling that he had been slapped rather hardly at both sides of his face. The silver-haired boy then groaned softly as he touched his cheeks, which felt coincidentally swollen. His eyes widened as he saw the stranger. He sat up immediately, glaring fiercely at the latter.

"You...was it you that slapped me just now?!?" He just shrugged in reply.

"But you keep thinking that you are dead, so the only way to get your conscious back is to slap you back to reality. Isn't it good? You are awake, and alive." Allen only blinked at his innocent smile, before looking around, recognising the buildings in his city instantly.

He was...alive. Alive.

His lips parted slightly, as a soft gasp escaped his mouth. His thumping heart started to stabilise. For once, he was glad that he was still alive. He turned to the stranger who had saved him.

"Who are you? Why did you save me?"

"Because I have my duty." Allen's eyes widened slightly as he placed his hands on his shoulders. It felt exceptionally warm, as he looked straight into his eye which was emerald in colour.

He found his person rather familiar, like he had seen him before.

"I have to protect you. You...cannot die." His heart thumped painfully at his chest for a second.

"What? Why...why I cannot die? Why?" He was in a fluster. Why he couldn't die? Mana said that he could not die, now this person, whom he had not even met, said that he could not die! He shook his head as he pushed the other aside roughly, getting himself up to his feet.

"Allen, you must listen to me! You cannot die under His blade!" The stranger grabbed his wrist, but was slapped away by his other hand, as Allen stared at him hardly with his dull grey eyes.

"And why is that so? Why?"

Faint noises of vehicles travelling on the roads were heard as the sky was brightening. Night had ended, as dawn had arrived. The stranger stared at him for a moment and sighed, before he took off the hood that had been hiding his appearance. Allen's eyes widened in shock.

"You...it's you! That person whom I met at the washroom in school! Why are you here? Who are you?" The other just let out a chuckle, before he smiled and showed his hand to him.

"Nice to meet you, Allen! My name is Lavi, and I'm in charge of protecting you from now onwards." Allen took his hand and they shook hands.

"Lavi...why are you in my school then? I don't remember seeing you as a student before." The sly-looking one just gave a grin as his emerald eye twinkled.

"You will find out in due course." Allen just frowned and gave a slight huff. Seriously, what was with all the suspense? The silver-haired teenager patted his dirty clothes and looked at the light-blue sky. It was going to be morning soon. He had to get back home and prepare for school.

After a few seconds, he realised that he had not completed his homework which was to be submitted by today. He groaned, gripped his silver strands in frustration, and was about to run when he felt a sudden dizziness and collapsed onto the ground, unconscious. Lavi walked up to him and just sighed, shaking his head.

"How is he, Lavi?" He turned to face a rather short man, resembling a dwarf in fairytale stories. Lavi couldn't help but laugh softly at that. The latter just stared at him rather sternly in reply.

"What?"

"Nothing, gramps. He is just plainly tired from all the things that had happened to him yesterday, that's all."

"I see. So, who was the Black Assassin he had sent?" Lavi's eyes narrowed as he frowned.

"The samurai." The latter's panda eyes narrowed as well.

"So He has made his move as well. We have to hurry."

* * *

_"I'm ready. Kill me."_

He leaned against the wall, his head facing slightly upwards. With his eyes partially opened, he stared at the sky, and found many birds flying past. He hissed as he shaded his view from his hand, chasing away the light which was trying to invade his thoughts. As time passed, he still could remember what that child had said when he was going to end his life.

_"I'm ready. Kill me."_

He hated the light. He felt his pocket, and took out his phone which had been vibrating for a while. He flipped it open and picked up the call. Murmurs were heard from the receiver, but he did not answer. After a moment, he ended the call, and slipped the phone back to his pocket.

He looked up. It would be morning soon.

* * *

"So, it failed?" The Earl put the phone back onto the table. He then lit up a cigarette in his mouth and started to inhale the thick clouds of smoke emitting out of it. He leaned back against his comfortable chair, grunting softly.

"I'm not surprised."

"Why not, Earl?" A girl was standing at the entrance of the room, holding on to a ragged doll in her arms. She just gave a sweet smile and walked up to him, looking at him earnestly.

"Rhode, back from school already?" The said girl heard someone talking to her and turned around, seeing a tall young man sitting beside the Earl, having a book in his hands. His black hat was resting on his lap silently. The blue-haired child just lit up another smile on her face, nodding her head.

"Hello, Uncle Tyki. You must teach me Mathematics later, okay? Can you?" She gave a pout and begging look in her cute eyes. It was too hard to resist. Tyki just averted his gaze somewhere, pretending that nothing had happened. Noticing everything, Rhode just bit her lip and walked up to him, shaking him till the young man finally surrendered himself to her.

She grinned happily at her victory. Tyki just groaned in defeat.

"C'mon, Rhode. I am not good in Mathematics. Earl is better than - " Tyki stopped talking as the child was almost into tears. Sighing dejectedly, he decided to continue to read the book in his hands. Rhode smiled happily again.

"It is very rare that the shinigami would fail in his duties. What should we do?"

"Don't worry. This matter is not worth hurrying, and perhaps he may be tired. We should give him some holidays to clear his thoughts in his mind."

"Tired? Did I hear wrongly? A shinigami _never _gets tired," Tyki said. The plump man just burst out into deep chuckles, amused by his comment.

"Well, well, this might be true. But the truth is, he has worked hard for a few weeks. We should let him have some days of break for now."

* * *

_Allen, you...are going to die today._

It was blurry. He was spinning with dizzy, wondering where he was. What had happened at that moment?

Oh, he remembered. He was at his room, while someone was in it too, wanting to kill him. He did not do anything, only placing his weapon at his throat, ready to end his life. At first, he was frightened, and wanted to call for help.

But then, he decided that death might be a good idea after all. And so, he waited, for the shinigami to claim his life.

In the end, he was not destined to die yet. Someone came, and took his hand, escaping from the window. His face was covered by the black hood, and he thus could not see him clearly. They were flying down at full speed, and at that particular moment, he did not want to die.

_"Nice to meet you, Allen! I'm Lavi, and I am going to protect you from now onwards."_

He had red hair, and a black-coloured eye-patch at his left eye. That emerald shine from his eye was beautiful, so beautiful that he was attracted to it. He was not wrong. He had met him before, and the two of them met once again.

Was this...coincidence? Or...was it supposed to happen in the very first place?

_Allen, you cannot die. You must not die._

Thoughts swam around his head. He did not know who he was anymore. Who was he? Why was his life so precious that he could not just abandoned it easily? Why?

So many questions. So...many...

"You are awake, Allen!"

Grey pools gradually opened, as the silver-haired teenager groaned softly, feeling his hurting head. He then looked at the one who had talked to him, and realised that it was Lavi, the stranger who had saved him from danger. Hissing under his lips, he sat up groggily, his mind blank.

"Where am I?" Lavi blinked at the question, and thought for a while.

"Hmm, you fainted just now, so I brought you back to your house. If you want to go back to school, it would be impossible."

"Why?"

"Because it's already two in the afternoon!" Allen turned to stare at him for a while, nodding his head gently, before his eyes went as wide as tennis balls, his mouth curved up in horror.

"WHAT?!?" Allen grabbed his clock and stared hardly at the numbers. Thinking that everything must have been a mistake, he _glared _hardly at the clock again, trying to change the goddamn numbers using some illusionary tricks performed by most magicians he had seen on television programmes, but it was painfully obvious that it was impossible. His homework and the glares from his teachers all tumbled into his aching head immediately. He looked into the situation helplessly, and imagined the darkened face of Lenalee when he met her.

"Why didn't you wake me up?" Allen wailed, messing up his hair in frustration. It was as if his doomsday had just crashed right up to his doorstep, turning his world upside down instantly. His headache ached even more at the thought of his uncle, who might show up anytime in the day. It would be drastic if he found out that he did not go for work today. Stumbling from the bed and up to his feet, he went to his cupboard and threw out whatever shirts or shorts he could wear, and started preparing for work immediately.

"Erm, may I ask what you are doing?" Lavi asked, pointing to him.

"What do you expect? I cannot just stay here idle all day! I have to work." The red-haired teenager tapped his finger on his chin as he peered at the ceilings, seemed to be deep in his thoughts.

"Because of your uncle?" Allen stiffened.

"Who...are you actually? What else do you know about me?" Lavi gave a cheeky smile to him in reply and said:

"Many! Like, I know that you do not like people to call you shortie or something..."

"Hey! I'm still seventeen! I'm still in puberty, you know!" Allen interrupted and made a face, looking at him with much displeasure. He slammed the cupboard door shut as he took out his bag and threw stuffs that he needed into it. He slid his hands into a pair of pale brown gloves as he started combing his hair neatly using his favourite grey comb bought from his foster father. It was his birthday present after all, and he took great care of it.

"I know, but you are considered small-build when you reach seventeen. It's like...you are having malnutrition." Lavi looked closely at Allen's house keys in his hand and spun it around his fingers, playing with it.

"Don't underestimate my appetite. You _don't _know me." Allen grabbed the keys back to his possession and headed for the door, walking along the narrow pavement and down the stairs to the basement of the house. Followed behind him was Lavi, who was observing the surroundings for quite a while. Allen stopped by his kitchen and grabbed some sandwiches to munch on the way.

"No way..._these _are considered your lunch?" Lavi looked at him incredulously.

"For now, yes. I will always settle my lunch before I go to work, but the situation now is different. In normal days, these are only appetisers to fill my stomach temporarily." Allen smiled as he closed the door of the refrigerator and prepared to leave. Lavi just raised his eyebrow as he tugged his hands into the pockets of his deep-blue jeans.

"Normally I have lunch at 12 noon sharp, but because of you...ah, never mind. It does not matter now." Allen put on his bright-red jacket and fumbled with his keys, finding the right one which would unlock the main door.

"But would it be okay if you miss a day of school?"

"It is okay, as long as I produce an excuse letter and submit it to the General Office," Allen replied as he wore his shoes which were already beyond recognition. Lavi just gave a rather grimaced look at the particular evident hole at the front of his left shoe, seeing his big toe wriggling inside. His stomach just churned uncomfortably.

"Are you going to follow me for like every single second? I'm not a kid anymore!" Allen stated as they were already standing in the middle of the streets.

"Yes! Remember that I'm going to be the one protecting you from dangers?" The redhead pointed out his main aim to the silver-haired boy once again. Allen just could not understand why he sounded so enthusiastic about this.

"But what you are doing now will only attract more attention! It would be worse if you let my uncle see you!"

"And why is that so?"

"Because," Allen looked straight into his eye seriously. "Seeing you as my _personal _friend, he will keep pestering you for money, and rob everything out of you till you have nothing left. Nothing. Not a single penny."

Wait. When did Lavi become his _personal _friend?

Lavi did not seem to be shocked at all.

"Really?"

Allen frowned, obviously knew that he did not believe a word he said. Giving up explaining these rather _complicated _stuffs to the redhead, the silver-haired teen started heading off to his destination. The redhead continued to follow him behind, but he did not really care, as long as he would not disturb him when he was working.

Peering at him at the corner of his eye, he wondered who Lavi was. He seemed to be a very mysterious person, even though he had introduced himself. He did not talk much about himself. In fact, they were mostly talking about issues circulating his own personal life rather than his. And everything became even weirder when he said that he needed protection all of a sudden. Why did he need to be protected? From who? And who exactly was after his life? Everything just seemed to be jumbled all over the place!

Maybe...that person was going to come back again? The one who tried to assassinate him yesterday night. He wondered. But why?!? Why was his life so important and threatening that everyone came running after him? It was not as if he had made enemies in his whole life! He was just a plain, normal boy who had normal lifestyles as most people around here!

Though he admitted that his life was a _little _different from the others. Yes, a _little_.

"Alllennn! Are you listening to me?" They were at a bus stop. He turned rather tiredly to the one calling him for a few seconds.

"Yes, what is it?"

"Taking a bus?" Allen's eyes rolled in exaggeration. He was super amazed. Did Lavi have two personalities, acting smart for a while, before acting stupid like a dummy?

Suddenly, he saw someone. Someone whom he did not want to see.

"Something wrong, Allen?" Lavi noticed his tension and asked. Allen did not hear his words as his gaze was still onto a middle-aged man who was apparently heading towards their direction. The boy then turned to the opposite direction, praying hardly that a bus would just pop out and take him away. Allen groaned inwardly. Of all times, why must he notice Cross at this moment?!?

God answered his calls. A bus came a few seconds later, and he hastily boarded it, pulling Lavi together with him. They walked to the back seats, as Allen took a book out of his bag and covered his face, peeking outside sometimes to note where his location was. When the bus finally left, he revealed his face and let out a huge sigh of relief.

"Who are you avoiding, Allen?" Allen just stared at the bewildered redhead, before he turned around and stared outside the window.

He was glad that he said his prayers every night before he slept.

Praise the Lord.

* * *

Pls review! :D


	3. Awakening Memories

**It's a little long, pls bear with me. But PLSSSS review! Everything is all appreciated !**

* * *

**Chapter 3: Awakening Memories**

Many minutes had passed, and they had passed by many buildings and streets. Allen was staring at his watch as every second passed, a worried look on his face. Though they did not wait rather long for the bus to come and the bus was not moving very slow through the journey, but he had come out late after all and it would minutes before he was late for work. He swept away strands of his hair that were itching his face in frustration and sighed inwardly.

"Why are you sighing, Allen?" He nearly jumped when he heard someone talking to him. He turned his head around and saw a rather goofy grin belonging to a certain redhead who was sitting beside him. The silver-haired boy just blinked for a moment, before something snapped in his head, realising that Lavi was following him to work today. He turned his head to the front and just groaned softly.

"Nothing."

"Are you sure? You does not sound rather energetic," Lavi replied. Allen just frowned at his comment. How was he going to be energetic when he was going to be late for his work?

"Why do you think this way?"

"Huh?" Lavi blinked.

"Why do you think I'm the energetic type?" Allen asked again. Lavi just peered above and tapped his chin lightly, pondering about it. Hearing no answer from the other, Allen just supposed that Lavi had mistaken his character for something else. Sure, he agreed that he was not the depressing types, but he was not really those who could always deal everything in an optimistic way. Mostly he did that, but sometimes he had to face reality and accept things that had to stay that way.

"I just think that you do." This caught the silver-haired boy by surprise, as he turned to Lavi who had finally replied. The smile lit on his cheery face stunned him slightly.

"Because, a smile suits your beautiful face, Allen! A sad look on your face is rather weird. As I thought, a smile suits you more!"

Lavi's laughters echoed softly through his mind, but his words etched deeply in his memory. Allen turned his head and looked down, seeing the grey floor of the bus. For his entire life, no one had told him that a smile suited best on his face. No one.

A smile crept up on his face. He had never felt this happy before.

"Oh, Allen! You smile!" Lavi pointed to him, astonished. Allen just grunted and looked outside, not wanting to admit. The wind blew hardly at his face from the window, but that warm smile never left his face at all.

"Thank you, Lavi." He murmured.

Suddenly, the bell rang and the bus soon came to a stop, opening the doors. Allen looked up from his seat and gasped, realising that he had to alight now. Pressing the bell again not to let the doors close on them, he pulled the startled redhead off the seat as the two boys rushed down the stairs and onto the streets.

"A-Allen, you startled me!" Lavi panted.

"I'm sorry, Lavi. I realise that we have to alight at this stop, or else we have to walk a very long way to my workplace," Allen spoke, looking at his watch at the same time. He groaned rather loudly as he realised that he was already five minutes' late. Without warning, he pulled the poor Lavi who had not even understand the whole situation they were in and ran across the streets, through many buildings, till they reached a particular terrace house with a small beautiful garden and a rather big pool available. Lavi's eyes widened with awe as Allen went up and pressed the doorbell once.

Immediately, the sound of a bark was heard inside the house. It did not sound ferocious, but was still rather loud for human's ears, so Lavi jumped slightly and looked at the silver-haired boy in puzzlement, but Allen did not seem to be affect by it, his mind only thinking of that he should say to the owner of the house for being late.

"Who is that?" The brown door opened, and a woman stepped out of the house, looking at them. Allen just shifted rather uncomfortably at the cold stare fixed directly at him, as she went to open the gates. Meanwhile, Lavi did not even sense a single thing as he just waved at her in a casual way.

"Hello!"

"Lavi!" Allen's shocked face turned to him. Maybe it was a bad idea to bring Lavi along. The lady stopped with her keys and just stared at the smiling one for a few seconds, before she ignored the greeting and opened the gates.

"Come in. You have a lot to explain when you see madam in the house, I tell you," She spoke in a rough tone, a foul and disgusted look displayed on her plumped face just drained every energy he had in him. Allen gulped as he walked to the door, removed his shoes and went inside. Lavi followed suit.

The insides of the house was ten times more spacious compared to Allen's rather small apartment only fitted for one to stay. There were many ancient paintings on the walls and some exquisitive antiques displayed in glass wardrobes. The television the household had was as wide and thin as a sheet of paper, while three laptops were seen on the couches made from real leather.

"Allen, where are we? Are you really working here?" Lavi asked incredulously. Before Allen could reply, there was a shout from above as a little girl sprang down the large stairs and pounced onto the startled silver-haired teenager in front of her.

"Allen-nii! What took you so long to come here? I miss you!" A softer bark was heard as a greyhound was seen at the stairs, wagging its tail. It seemed to be rather happy that Allen had finally come and visit them.

"I miss you too, Angela," Allen said, hugging her back.

"Allen Walker-san!" They looked up, and saw a fair lady walking down the stairs, not pleased with him being late. Allen bowed down immediately at her arrival as she went up to him.

"I'm very sorry, Sakura-san. Something just cropped up at my house just now, so I arrive late."

She did not say a word, her eyes still on Allen. Lavi did not know what was happening here, but he knew that he should not interfere, so he just stood at one corner and waited.

"Hey, nii-san." Lavi felt a soft tug and looked down, seeing the little girl's beautiful sapphire eyes sparkling at him. He felt a hard thump in his chest, as he covered his face and groaned softly.

That pair of blue sapphire eyes, reminded him of someone whom he knew, and was important to him.

"Nii-san, did you hear me?" Lavi looked down again at her. He then smiled and put his hands on her tiny shoulders gently.

"What?"

"What's your name, nii-san? Why are you here? Did I know you before?" Lavi pondered for a while, before he smiled and replied:

"I'm Lavi, Allen-nii's best friend. Due to some matters, I have to stay by Allen-nii's side for a while. You don't mind, do you?" The bubbly girl twirled her golden curls by her index finger and bit her lips, thinking for a moment, before a smile appeared on her brightened face.

"Of course you can, Lavi-nii! Please come here with Allen-nii more often!" She chirped happily, jumping onto him and wrapped her arms around his neck. Lavi was stunned by her actions, wondering what he should respond to her.

"Angela-san, don't be friendly towards strangers that you have met!" The plump lady who opened the door for them earlier exclaimed as she went up to them and wanted to put the child down, but Angela just whined and shook her head vigourously.

"No, no, no! I want to be with Lavi-nii! I want to be with Lavi-nii! Go away, obaa-san!" The lady stopped in her tracks, shocked by what she had said. Allen and the lady standing in front of him turned to where the commotion was, wondering what had happened.

"Lavi..." Allen did not know whether he should be thankful or laugh at this. Lavi just laughed rather bitterly, not expecting the girl to be so friendly towards him.

* * *

It had been years since he disappeared from his sight. No matter how hard he tried to search for him, he couldn't find him. It was as if he had disappeared from this world forever, erasing his existence along with him. He wondered how long time had passed, and how his heart still yearned for him. That feeling had supposed to die down, yet it did not vanish, pining more for him.

Lavi took a pocket watch from his pocket and flipped it open. It showed a particular time which had never moved on ever since he left. From the very day he disappeared, this time had halted. The redhead sighed as he took off the thick headband and ran his fingers through his soft red-dyed hair. He then turned to stare at the silver-haired teen who was sleeping soundly at the side of the sofa. His eyes softened as he smiled gently, before staring at the pocket watch again.

"It has been a long while, right?" He murmured. He did not expect to see him again at this time. Through the faint moonlight shining through the opened windows, he saw the real figure of the beautiful samurai, with his pretty strands of raven hair and his precious sword at his hand. Yet, his heart fell when he saw that he was about to assassinate someone in front of him, and it was a rather innocent-looking boy to begin with! Though he was known by his bad temper, but he would never kill anyone. Lavi closed his eyes, hearing the soft rhythmic thumps of his heart from his chest. It took him so long to find him, and this was the result he had?

They had always been acting like mortal enemies. They had a relationship with each other, yet they couldn't count as friends. Their characters were totally opposite, and no one would expect them to work together very well. Whenever he tried to be friendly to him, he would give people a murderous glare to get away from him, or to speak heartless words that would greatly hurt people mentally. But even so, he just could not leave him like that.

He believed in him. Even if that was the painful truth displayed in front of his very eyes, he still chose to believe him.

Allen stirred slightly from his position, before he fell into a deep sleep again. Lavi wondered whether he was always so tired everyday. His face was so white and pale, and he was so skinny despite his age. He was just three years younger than him, and surely teenager's mentabolism was higher than adults right? His hand slowly reached for his head, and brushed his hair gently. Even his sleeping expression looked sad. Was he having sad dreams recently?

Now, it was different. Now, they were really enemies, and he would fight all his way towards him, and demand him for the real reason on his disappearance and his sudden appearance as a totally different person than before. Even if he had to have a battle with him, he would bring the real him back. His hand slowly left the silver-haired teen's side, as he stood up and left the silent room.

"Oh, Lavi-san." Angela's mother said as he saw him walking down the stairs. Angela was sitting at the corner of the living room playing with her dolls.

"I'm going off first. Thanks for letting me stay once again, madame." She just blinked and blushed a little at Lavi's politeness. The fierce-looking lady who opened the gates for them previously just eyed at him with suspicion, like he was someone dangerous. Lavi just laughed bitterly as he waved towards her, though she totally ignored him and went into the kitchen with a basket of clothes needed to be washed.

"I see. Do you need me to inform Allen about this?"

"No, there is no need to. He looks rather tired. Just let him sleep for a while." Lavi said, a smile on his face.

"Byebye, Lavi-nii! Please come again!" Angela hopped over to him as she strained her neck to look at him. Lavi laughed softly as he bent down and patted her head lightly.

"I will, if Allen-nii allows me. See you again, little one." She giggled and nodded her head, running back to the corner to play with her dolls. The redhead just smiled before exiting from the house, closing the door behind him.

* * *

_Allen!_

Allen groaned softly, hearing a faint voice calling towards him. He blinked his eyes, staring into the darkness in front of him, wondering what he was doing. Sitting in the middle, he slowly looked up, and saw someone standing a few metres away from him. His black coat was fluttering through the blows of the wind, as his long strands of raven hair was brushing against his face.

The both of them just stared at each other. Allen strained his eyes, wanting to have a better look at him, but realised that he couldn't. He had the urge to reach out to him, but he wondered why he was reacting like this. He searched through his memories, but there was none.

He couldn't remember anything about him, yet why did he had a familiar and warm feeling that he had known him for a very long time? He clutched his chest, feeling stabs of pain piercing through him. The sinking uneasiness and fear was so heavy that it was suffocating him. He stared into his eyes, and he saw sadness dwelling in them. That person was calling to him; calling to him so desperately with such dark, hurtful eyes.

"Who..are you?"

_Who ...are you?_

"Allen-nii!" Allen woke up with a start, as Angela slapped his back very hardly. The silver-haired teen winced at the stinging pain, blinking his eyes. As the lights in the room shone, he shaded his eyes by his hand, slightly uncomfortable with the sudden glare. As he turned, he saw Angela standing in front of him.

"Angela?"

"It's almost dinnertime, Allen-nii!" Angela said, smiling. Allen just blinked for a moment, before his eyes widened when he saw the time on the clock.

"It's 7pm already?" Allen cried, before he stood up abruptly and ran out of the room, rushing down the stairs. As he saw the two figures of Angela's parents, he stopped as he reached the living room, wondering where Lavi was.

"If you are looking for Lavi-kun, he has left for a while. I thought of waking you up to inform you, but he says he does not want to disturb you." Angela's mother said as she put a plate of food onto the table. "But recently, you look exhausted than usual. What happened?"

Allen just smiled and shook his head. As he turned his head, he saw the father sitting at the couch, reading a newspaper under the lights. As he noticed Allen, he lowered down the newspaper and smiled at him. Allen smiled back in return, before he stared at the bright surrounding silently. Although this house did not have much inside, yet it felt so warm staying here. The heat of the lights were slowly entering his skin and warming up his cold body, and the aroma of the food smelt nice. He could hear Angel's hyper shouts from behind, as the little girl skipped down the stairs and ran to her mother's side, staring at the dishes on the table with sparkly eyes.

"Allen, please stay and have dinner with us." Angela's mother's warm voice went into his ears. But at this very moment, he knew that he couldn't stay.

"Sorry, but I have some matters at home. I must go back now." Allen said apologetically, though this sentence stung him slightly on his heavy chest. He was dreading to go back to the empty house, but there was also no reason to stay here either. Allen took his brown coat lying on the sofa, before heading for the door.

"Are you sure you do not want to join us?" Angela's mother asked.

"Join us, Allen-nii!" Angela pleaded with her soft but cute voice. Allen was lost for words. As he stared outside the window, he saw slight white flashes across the night sky, following by the low rumbles of faint thunder. The storm was still rather far away, but it would soon come here.

"No, I have to go. Thanks again." Allen smiled as he opened the door. No one said anything. As the door gradually closed in front of him, the warm and lively image disappeared from him instantly. Darkness with little light from the streets surrounded him, as he was alone again. The silver-haired teen then walked towards the bus stop, deciding to return home. It was a peaceful night, and he had always like strolling quietly in the stretching night, but why was he feeling depressed today?

The pale moonlight was tracing along the pathway, as the tall shadows of street lights cast on the road that stretched continuously ahead. The golden lights from the row of houses flickered gently, as he could hear voices and laughter from the families inside. Allen smiled to himself, taking a deep breath before exhaling slowly. It was nice, to have someone staying together with you, to share happiness and woes together. To him, this was a only wish which he desired for his whole life.

As he looked across, he saw the bus stop ahead. It was an isolated place situated at the side of the road. At the same time, lightning flashed across the sky and rain started to fall onto the ground. The silver-haired teen huddled himself closer to his coat, running towards the bus stop that would provide him shelter and protect him from the pelting cold rain. As his foot stepped onto a water puddle that let out a rather loud splash, he suddenly looked up from his position. Someone was already there, and it looked like he had not left here for quite a while. Through the faint moonlight, he just stared at this mere stranger who crossed paths with him, as the stranger slowly turned to face him.

His heart skipped for a split second.

For the whole night, the rain continued to fall endlessly.

* * *

It was morning, as Allen was walking on the streets, on his way to school. His saggy eyes from the lack of sleep slowly sank down his face features, and his face looked so horrible that it was terrifying some street passerbys a little. The silver-haired teen blinked tiredly at them, pondering at their weird reactions, but after that, decided not to care as he moved on.

_Allen._

Allen gritted his teeth hardly as he touched his chest, feeling the same cold and piercing pain he had ever since that dream came to him. It was something he did not recognise, and something he wanted to throw it away from his reach, yet it would always manage to come to him, its voice ringing so hardly and so painfully in his mind, triggering something within his heart. At that particular moment, he was sure that it meant something; something that he couldn't risk casting his eyes away from the matter.

Something important.

"Allen!" Allen looked up and saw Krory standing in front, waving to him. Somehow, the pain soon ceased and the silver-haired teen straightened himself and produced a very bright smile on his happy face, running to the other.

"Are you alright, Allen? You look super dazed standing there! I'm so scared that you might just faint there due to heatstroke!" Krory said as he laughed loudly. Allen just gave a rather stupid look on his face as he smiled sheepishly, feeling a little guilty letting his friend worry about him. The two of them continued to chat as they walked to school together.

"Are you thinking about something?" Krory asked. Allen wondered whether that was considered as a thought in his mind, or something that he couldn't shake off, even though he wanted it to go away.

"I think so." He said as he smiled. Krory nodded his head as he caught that meaning. Still, he couldn't forget that cold and sorrowful eyes he saw in that darkness, seeking out for someone. Seeking out for...him.

"Allen?" Allen blinked as he turned to Krory. He then realised that they had arrived at the stairs leading up to the school just a few metres ahead of them. The silver-haired teen just laughed rather sheepishly again as he proceeded up the stairs, looking away. Grabbing his books tightly by his chest, he walked up briskly, deciding to forget what was bothering him and focus on his lessons, and as he paid full attention to the lectures and tutorials, there was a possibility that he would eventually forget them all! Yes, he would definitely forget everything; everything regarding that dream.

As he arrived at the last step, he failed to notice someone rushing towards him. As he looked up, his eyes widened as he collided with that someone, his books flying in the air as he landed on his bottom painfully. He had no time to react, as those thick and heavy books tumbled down onto him. The silver-haired teen groaned innerly, feeling his head spun. The pain that he chased away was starting to come back to him again.

"Allen!" Lenalee ran to him and throw away the books that were burying him, helping him up. Allen gasped and coughed hoarsely as he could finally catch a breath of fresh air. Krory also came and help to arrange the books neatly for him.

"Lenalee..." He looked at her, waiting for her to chide him as usual, but the olive-haired girl did not say anything as she helped him stand up to his feet. Krory just blinked at this, so surprised that the usual tigress did not even open her mouth to say something. Lenalee just gave him a cold stare which made him shiver slightly. Krory looked away quickly, wondering whether this girl could guess people's thoughts so easily.

"Thank you, Lenalee."

"Don't show such a dumb face next time!" Lenalee said as she walked away. Allen picked up his books and just stared at her back for a while, before he smiled and proceeded to the class together with Krory. As he went inside and sat at his usual place, he took out the books and notes, waiting for the teacher to start the first lesson. His gaze drifted to the corridor outside, as he saw someone coming. He couldn't see that person's face, but a chill feeling suddenly invaded him. Allen blinked, wondering what that was.

"Allen Walker!" He turned abruptly at the teacher who was already standing in front of the class. Everyone was already standing up, preparing to greet the teacher. Allen then realised what terrible mistake he had made and stood up, apologising to her profusely, but it looked like the teacher would not be pleased at him for a while. Lenalee just sighed and slapped her forehead gently.

"I really want to know what that mind of yours is thinking," Lenalee said as she was sitting at a classmate's seat, facing Allen who was just sitting right behind. Class break had started, but due to this load of homework that the teacher had given for his punishment, it was better to skip break and finished this as soon as possible.

"I...don't know what you are talking about," Allen just wished Lenalee would stop talking for once and let him do his homework quietly and peacefully, but he knew he would not get his wish. That girl continued to blabber on and on till he couldn't stand it anymore and decided to go out for a little walk and a breath of fresh air. She wanted to accompany him, but he kindly refused, thinking that he had heard enough of her lectures.

The silver-haired teen paced along the second floor of the building, looking around rather aimlessly. He had always thought that everything would be fine once he came to this country, to abandon that horrid past and start a new life outside, with new friends and making new relationships. It was true that the inner wound he had when Mana died was gradually healing, but somehow, new wounds seemed to have come to him. Allen slowly slowed down as he stopped, touching the railings beside him.

Although he did not want to remember anything regarding that dream, but he had an uneasy feeling within him; a feeling that he couldn't leave it aside. If there was a chance, he wished to see that pair of eyes again, and when he saw him, he would go up to him, and ask him to leave him alone and go away. That person had no right to intrude in his peaceful life and destroy everything he had till now. He had no right....to make him so miserable.

Allen's eyes slowly widened as he recalled something. Now as he thought of it, he felt the same cold and saddening feeling when that person came to his room and attempted to assassinate him. That pair of cold and heartless, unfeeling eyes was constantly boring into him, transferring his real aim at his arrival to him silently. He then wondered why he felt like that, towards a person who wanted to kill him. He shouldn't be so kind to anyone, even to his enemy.

He wanted to see that person. He wanted to meet him.

The bell rang, signalling the end of break and the resume of class. Allen turned and ran back to class which was just distances away. He did not look ahead, and as he felt a very light brush on someone's shoulders, he was sure that someone was walking in opposite direction of him, but at this moment, that same chill feeling came to him again. This astonished him as he stopped and turned around, only to find an empty corridor. Allen breathed heavily, certain of something.

That feeling was the same as the one in his dream.

* * *

That person did not question him on why he failed his mission. It was rather surprising, but he did not really care. He accepted those ridiculous orders from him, so that he could satisfy the inner desire that he wanted: blood. He wanted people to perish and suffer under the depths of burning hell, to see their beautiful bodies painted with crimson red and to hear their inhumane screams tearing his head apart. For most people who would definitely break from inside just by seeing these horrifying scenes, he could feel nothing, because he had seen so many of this that he was already numb of it. He always saw blood in stages of his life, seeing too much that sometimes he was a little sick of it, but yet it seemed to be enjoyable, seeing people suffering in their misery and begging him to spare their puny lives.

He would never fail in any of his missions, whether that victim was a president, a prime minister, or even his father or mother. His heart felt for no one, only the pride of himself. He only lived for himself and the sword he was holding; something which was passed down to him when his clan perished. He then saw no meaning in living at his hometown anymore and abandoned it, coming to London.

Yet, something was lacking; something which did not make his satisfy complete. Something inside him was stirring slowly, seeking out for something. That feeling was disturbing and annoying. He wanted to cast it away by all means, even if it would mean stabbing that very place and destroy everything with that tainted sword of his. It would be better to end it early, yet he realised that feeling was getting stronger...when he met him.

He was supposed to kill him, under the orders of the Millennium Earl. He was a loner, no one living with him. Only seventeen, he had to juggle at least four part-time jobs and attend school at the same time. The school fees was paid by his uncle, but that person would sometimes vanish without a trace.

It seemed easy; too easy.

He went to his house, opening the front door without difficulty. He paced silently through the cold floor and the darkness, walking up the stairs and towards his room. As he slowly opened the door, a rather familiar scent filled the light, unmoving air which astonished him slightly, but only for a very short moment as he approached the one on the bed, sleeping. He stopped at the bedside, his gloved hand pulling Mugen out of the shealth as he aimed very carefully at his throat shimmering rather brightly under the silver moonlight. Dark sapphire eyes stared at him.

The teen stirred softly as he turned around, his silver locks across his eyes reflecting the moonlight as his lips were partially opened. His chest ascended and descended in a slow and even motion. He had a raw scar at his left eye which was slashed downwards rather deeply. He did not move, observing his face features, listening to his soft snores in the silent night, hearing the soft heatbeats at his chest.

Something hit his chest, as he hissed and touched the left side of his chest where he was cursed. He raised his sword, fixing his gaze at his throat. He couldn't waste his time here anymore, having a warning sign that something bad would happen.

At that moment, that teen was also awake, and realised his presence when he placed his sword at his throat. Soft, inaudible gasps was heard, as he was shocked to find him here. He probably wouldn't know that he was here to kill him, though he wondered why such thought surfaced. Even if he was the youngest victim instructed to kill, such sympathy wasn't allowed.

"Who are you?"

His voice rang in his ears, soft and crisp. He was definitely shaking from this sudden encounter, yet what was this? Many victims asked who he was, and he would just cut their throats for being a busybody even when they were going to die, yet why did he feel the tiniest urge to answer back? It felt so nostalgic and...familiar, like he had heard that warm and secure voice before.

Something cut his thoughts immediately, as he realised what he was exactly doing. When he was about to deliver the final blow, that teen said something unexpected.

"I'm ready. Kill me."

He was slightly stunned by that reply. At first he was shaking, but this time, he was completely different. It felt like he was finally resolved on doing something; something which he could only do and no one else. His voice was firm and not shaky anymore. That grey eyes were looking elsewhere, assuming that he was standing there, but as he stared at those eyes, he already knew the answer.

Somehow, it sounded too easy. People would normally fight for their lives, yet he did not even struggle and was willing to die under his sword. Was he so keen in dying? Why could he throw something as important away so easily? This angered him, as his sword was silently moving lightly through his skin. He was about to cut it open, when he looked up and saw someone crashing inside through the window. With a swift and light turn in midair, he grabbed the teen's hand and pulled him out of the window. The two of them then disappeared below in the darkness.

But, he couldn't forget that look in that pair of eyes which shone in the darkness; that sorrowful look that swam inside its orbs, which was stirring something inside him. Something...dangerous. Though he had escaped, but if that intruder did not appear suddenly, he...supposed he couldn't put down his sword onto him. Something was stopping him, stopping him from all these endless and meaningless killings.

It was so ironic, but yet, he wanted to see him again. He wanted to see that pair of silver crystal eyes that shone so brightly.

* * *

"Why would you do this for me?" He asked the olive-haired girl wearing full black, who was standing at a dim corner of the alley. Her pretty but cruel violet eyes burnt coldly in the darkness, as she turned and put her cold gaze onto him.

"You know that, Kanda."

"What?"

"Don't act dumb," She replied, as she walked towards him. Placing her smooth arms around his neck, she went over to his ear and blow it lightly, putting a very light kiss on it. She then released her arm and stood in front of him, that pair of dead eyes staring at him. He felt nothing. It didn't stir anything when the two of them were rather close; too close that people might think that they were lovers.

"Don't do that."

"But you don't mind, do you?"

They were not lovers. He didn't even know whether she actually loved him. Afterall, assassins were trained to abandon their hearts and emotions. They just did it, out of a whim. It had become a habit, when the two of them met for the first time. Ever since, she had been clinging onto him for years, not wanting to let go.

"You know my answer."

She just laughed, a very soft chuckle echoed in the quiet surrounding. It sounded happy, though most likely it wasn't. They didn't know what happy was. They were just copying what people did in their normal lives. They smiled before, and laughed before, but everything was so stiff and so unreal. Their laughter sounded so disgusting, and their crooked smiles looked so fake.

She stopped laughing, as an eerie silence surrounded the air. She then went to his side and slinged her arms around his, leaning her head against his shoulders. The two of them just stayed like this, as they viewed the faint moon from above.

"I promise, I would succeed."

He just grunted. Her thick hair fluttered in the air, dancing in the cold wind.

Nothing stirred from him, even if she touched him. Yet, he felt something once he stared straight into his eyes which seemed to attract his attention, drawing him closer. What was that exactly?

He wanted to know.

* * *

The dark cruel sapphire eyes opened as he hissed at the curse which had started hurting again. He snorted at this unnecessary pain, looking up at the window above where he could see the moon very clearly. His sword was resting beside him, untouched. He ran his hand over the long strands of raven hair roughly, his eyes staring at the floors of the building.

There was no second chance. This time, he was going to kill him.

* * *

_Allen._

He saw many grey scenes playing in his head, which he concluded to be flashbacks. It was blurry and flashed momentarily in every few seconds. It was very irritating, his eyes had to look everywhere to see everything clearly, but the problem was, he couldn't recognise any one of them.

_Allen, notice me._

Gurgling screams filled the stale air reeked of blood, the sky in a stretch of crimson red. Unknown bodies were everywhere, its remains beyond recognisation. Inhumane laughter rang sharply and painfully through his ears, forcing him to remember all of these. Allen winced, begging it silently to stop all these playings. They were not real. They were surely not real.

_Hurry up and notice me._

His breath hitched, when he saw a pair of white hands stained with thick, concentrated blood that still felt warm, like the killing just ended not a while ago. His eyes widened as he just stared stunningly and blankly. These hands...whose hands were they? Why were they stained with blood...blood of humans? Why was his consciousness here? Why was he even here?

_Hurry up and notice me._

Countless of corpses were sprawn all over the place, their face expressions distorted, their white eyes opened in a terrifying way, and blood filled their whole mouths. He walked along the area, before he saw someone on the ground, bathed in a pool of black blood. His heart thumped hardly once, seeing the scattered white beads and the broken sword lying beside him.

_Quickly...before it's all too late._

"NO!"

Allen woke up with a start, his body jerking forward so hardly that he almost sprained his back. The silver-haired teen breathed heavily, his eyes still widened as he stared at himself in the mirror in front of him. He then stared around the place, realising that he was in his home.

He then stared at his pair of hands. They were clean, with no single stain of blood, but after that nightmare, he could not forget the beautiful and cruel crimson colour that painted that pair of exceptionally white hands. Allen got out of bed and rushed to the washroom quickly, getting to the sink. He turned on the water tap and began washing and scrubbing his hands hardly, making sure that he cleansed every single area of his hands at least twice.

_Allen._

Allen groaned softly as his head started to hurt painfully. His left hand touched his forehead which was burning, feeling the coolness of the water slowly travelling down his nose and towards his mouth. The water tasted rather bitter due to the soap that was mixed with it.

_Remember._

"What..." He muttered, his feet stumbled to the side of the white wall as his whole body was now shivering greatly from the splitting headache. Somehow, the left eye that was injured was starting to hurt as well. Allen whimpered softly in sheer pain as he slowly slumped down onto the floor, unable to stop the shakings from his hands to his feet. He opened his eyes, and saw the ceiling spinning in front of him.

_Remember, who you actually are._

The nightmare started to flash in his mind again. Many bodies were displayed in front of him, blood decorated the whole place with its beautiful colour. No one was standing there beside him. No one, only himself. That pair of white hands were shown to him, dirtied by the lukewarm blood that were dripping down between his slender sharp fingers, and everyone's disgusting faces before they reached their deaths' doors. Finally, white beads that shimmered beautifully like little diamonds and a broken blade that had lost its shine lying motionlessly were on the ground, just right beside someone...someone he knew all along.

"Wh-What is...that?" Allen gritted his teeth so hardly that his gums started to bleed and fill his whole mouth. He did not recognise all of these memories at all! Allen shook his head vigorously, his head knocked onto the wall accidentally, but he thought it was a good idea to snap him out of this, as he started to hit his hand against the wall endlessly, wishing that it would just stop. Blood stained the white walls, just like that whiteness in that pair of hands gradually being erased away by that redness.

"S-Stop it! Stop it!" Allen gasped, his eyes slowly losing its vision. Inwardly, he wished that someone would come and save him from this torment.

"Allen!"

He slowly looked up, seeing someone in front of him. He tried looking closely, but realised that he didn't have any strength left to do that. He felt a pair of warm hands touching his shoulders. Was that pair of hands stained with blood as well? But he just knew that it wasn't, as he slowly lost consciousness.

* * *

Review, review, review! Pls review and tell me how you feel about this chapter!


	4. Rain

**Note: Just to clarify on what this story is briefly about. After reading the four chapters, all of you would have a slight rough idea that Allen has lost his memories, something which is very important and would lead him to his true identity. There is a reason why Bookman and Lavi had to keep a close eye on Allen, which will reveal in later chapters. At this chapter, Lenalee is said to be an orphan who was picked up by Kanda. Her past and her real aim to be Allen's friend would be revealed in later chapters as well.**

**As all of you read closely, Allen is gradually picking up the lost pieces of his memories. This chapter Rain is mostly on reminiscence.**

**Chapter 5 (Preview) - Never a Coincidence: Allen and Kanda met in coincidence...or was everything planned all along? Lenalee decided to take her revenge which started 8 years ago, revealing back the tragedy which changed her life forever.**

**I would be updating weekly as my tests are finally over! Hope that I can get good grades for my modules! **

**Enjoy, and don't forget to review! XD**

* * *

**Chapter 4: Rain**

He opened his eyes, gazing around and wondering where he was. The vision was rather blurry, the terrible ache drumming hardly in his head, but a soft and soothing sound seemed to be calming himself down. He blinked, staring at the whole situation with puzzlement and worry. He wasn't supposed to be here...but something was strange. The surrounding that he was in seemed so utterly familiar, like he had been here before.

He started moving his hands, realising that he had been touching the rough surface of the ground all along. He moved his stiff and awkward fingers, his eyes straining and his mind searching for clues to where he was as the vision was slowly clearing. The silver-haired teen gasped slightly at the touch of water on the ground, before he felt something falling down lightly on his heavy shoulders. He looked up, feeling some entering his eyes.

It was raining, he realised.

The sky was painted with a stretch of grey and dull yellow, hazy clouds covering the view above. Tall buildings of similar sizes were everywhere, and people were walking on the streets. He was just at a typical city, a place which he had seen many times, but somehow, it rang a bell within him. Allen slowly stood up, staring at everything with shock.

"Where am I? Why am I here?"

Thoughts ran in his head endlessly, his eyes looking around. The whole place was so silent and so solemn, no one uttering anything as they walked past. Allen stared at a particular lady walking towards him, and was about to stop her and asked her some questions when he stopped. He didn't know why he stopped, as he just saw her walked past him without even turning her head to look at him. Her red umbrella were supported at the side of her shoulder nicely. The heels of her boots gave out a low thud as it stepped onto small water puddles. She was wearing shades at that time; the only thing that he was bewildered on. Who would wear shades on such rainy days?

Allen decided to find someone else instead, but it was the same. Everyone seemed to be hiding their faces, holding their umbrellas closer to their faces - like they were hiding something. This place was just too weird. Everyone was behaving so strangely, like something tragic had happened. He slipped his hand into his pocket, hoping to use his cellphone and call his friends, but to his astonishment, it wasn't there.

"Didn't I always put it in my pockets? Where is it?"

Suddenly, he heard sniffings. He blinked, wondering where the sound came from. Was it from a child who had somehow lost his way home? His heart thumped hardly as he looked around, but he couldn't find anyone. Anxiousness gripped on him tightly, as he wished that he could find this little one quickly.

That little one might be freezing right now, he supposed? Did he wear clothes thick enough to stand this type of harsh weather? Was he hungry? Why wasn't anyone going to him even though his cries was so loud in public? Was he sad? Was anyone accompanying him? Did he have a home?

At all these questions, Allen realised something; something that he had been running away for his whole life. Something which he did not want to face it, and wanted to erase it away from his memories. It was a dark past which he did not want to remember.

"Mummy...where are you?"

The soft cries was getting surprisingly closer. As Allen turned around, he saw a small boy squatting at the darkest corner of the streets. He was in rags and his hair was damped by the rain. He could see his whole body shivering so greatly from the cold, his cries begging for someone to notice him, to help him, to save him.

"Daddy...where are you?"

Many people passed, treating him as he was transparent and did not exist. It was like he was in this world, yet he could never reach to anyone who just ignored him and went their own ways. He was just there, and yet, he wasn't there. And at this point, he realised the reason on people masking their faces. It was probably that they did not want to see that pitiful expression, and chose to go away.

"Dear, why are you here?"

The small boy stopped his sniffles and stared at towering stranger standing in front of him. Silver eyes widened as he finally stopped crying, and the two of them just stared at each other silently, ignoring the people who were still walking past. The boy blinked his small, watery eyes at the stranger, staying silent. A few minutes later, the stranger stretched out his hand.

"Let's go home, little one."

Allen's eyes widened. The small boy's eyes widened as well, not expecting that he would say that. Through many hours out in the cold, crying till his throat was hoarse and painful, there was finally someone who noticed his lonely world and came in. That stranger accepted his existence, his smile brightening up his inner world rather magically. And as he took his hand, he just knew that he was the one.

Their shadows slowly disappeared into the crowd, yet Allen was still standing there, and as he followed back, he realised that this was no dream. It had happened, a particular time when he was very young. He was also squatting there, crying miserably for his parents who would never come to him anymore. He knew that he was already alone, yet he chose to pretend that they still existed.

At this, realisation hit him hardly. His eyes searched for that little boy, but he wasn't there anymore. Neither was the stranger who was willing to accept his fallen world.

* * *

His eyes gradually opened, viewing the usual ceiling in his room. Allen just stared blankly for a moment, his hands rubbing his tired eyes slowly. His mind was still spinning for whatever reason, and his left eye hurt terribly. He opened his mouth, coughing badly as he gasped for air.

"You are awake, Allen!" He heard someone at the side, and automatically turned towards him. The vision was still rather blurry, as he could only make out the redness of his hair and the black eye patch on his right eye. He had a grin on his face, as he turned to the table beside him and started washing a small towel by his hands. He just groaned, wondering what this was. Where he was.

"Where...what..." His voice sounded so weak, barely audible for one to hear clearly.

"Have you forgotten, Allen? You were screaming in your bathroom and fainted soon after. Luckily it is nothing serious," The red-haired guy replied with another warm smile, putting the warm towel on his forehead. Warmth started entering through his head, bringing comfort to one, yet he started to fear on that particular feeling. Why was he in such cosy and warm place when he was supposed to be out in the cold...

His eyes widened. Allen turned sharply towards Lavi again, this time staring hard at his face. Lavi just blinked, wondering what was going on here.

"Yes?"

Something just hit hard on his head, as he realised the reality he was in. Allen breathed in deeply, closing his eyes. It was just flashbacks of his past and nothing more. That dreadful past was over, and he was finally back to his secure and comfy room. He wasn't alone, because Lavi was right beside him when he was unconscious. Yes, everything was finally over.

"Allen?" Lavi noticed that he was dazed for quite a while, pondering on what had happened. Allen shook his head and produced a smile, as always.

"No, nothing. Thanks for coming, Lavi."

"No! It's lucky that I come by here, or else what would have happened to you, Allen...I was so freaking worried at that time!" Lavi exclaimed with a strong accent, standing up and putting the basin back into the bathroom before coming back again and settled down beside him. Allen stared at him, so glad that he was there for him.

"It's lucky that panda-gramps is here to help - Ow!" Lavi yelped at the sudden bang on his head. Allen just blinked at the sudden encounter, seeing a strange short man standing in front of him in a blink of an eye. There were black patches at his eyes - which really resembled of a typical panda. His hair was incrediously long which stretched upwards. Besides that, his head was totally bald.

"Sorry for the intrusion, Walker." He saw the silver-haired teen and bowed in politeness. Allen could only nod his head, acknowledging his greeting. Lavi was whining loudly, complaining on why he had to attack him so suddenly at this particular moment. The panda gramps just glared hardly at the rude one and smacked his head harder.

"Sorry for this guy's rudeness, Walker. I have no name, but you can call me Bookman."

"Oh...Hello Bookman. I'm Allen Walker."

"I know." He replied.

"You...know?" Allen repeated his previous sentence, bewildered. He was sure he didn't meet this person before. He stared at the two who was still hitting at one another continuously, thinking that they were both strange beings.

"Oh, Allen! You are thinking that we are strange right?" Lavi questioned him suddenly, startling him a little. Allen blinked, wondering whether Lavi could read people's thoughts.

"N-No, of course not! Why...would I think of that?" Allen sputtered slightly before he turned away, laughing rather bitterly to himself. It would be even stranger if he thought of them as normal human beings! Allen turned his head around quietly, eyeing at the two of them who were still creating a noisy rukcus at a corner. Why did they know him? Who...were they?

The thunder suddenly crashed, startling everyone as they turned to look at the dark sky in silence. Allen then realised that it was also raining at this place as well. As the rain slowly fell in front of his eyes, he could vision that particular past he had rather vaguely. He could see everything at every flash of lightning that came by seconds later. The pelting of the rain was getting louder and more deafening, till he couldn't hear himself anymore. The voice in his dreams.

"Allen?" Allen blinked and turned rather hesitantly towards Lavi, giving a dumb look. He then shook his head, telling him that it was nothing.

"Walker," Allen jumped slightly at the low and serious tone used by Bookman. He turned towards him sharply and showed a rather stiff face, paying total attention towards the elder. Lavi just stood there, keeping quiet for a moment, before stiffles of laughter could be heard.

"Lavi!" Allen was utterly embarrassed, while Bookman saw this as an insult and slapped that useless head of his. Ignoring the redhead's grumbling and whining, he turned towards the silver-haired teen.

"Have you remembered anything yet, Walker?"

"Eh?" Allen's eyes widened slightly, staring at the other with slight astonishment. Lavi stopped as well and stared at the both of them. The silver-haired teen looked downwards, wondering what he should say to this, or whether he wanted to say to him. He would want to keep his past a secret, and only little people knew about it. Emphasising it again would let him have the recollections again, which he did not want.

"Do you have any recollections about anything, Walker? Like, your past -"

"Gramps, you shouldn't force Allen to remember such things!" Lavi exclaimed, but shutted his mouth later when the elder shot a death glare to warn him not to say things at the wrong moment.

"E-Excuse me, but what did you say?" Allen asked, getting confused.

"Do not care him, Walker. Just answer my question," Bookman said, that pair of cold and cruel eyes seemed to be able to see through people's thoughts and throw away the fake mask that Allen always wore in front of everyone. Allen stared at that pair of strict eyes, realising that he couldn't run away anymore. He wanted to look away, but that eyes just pulled his attention forcefully back to him. Sweat started coming out of his forehead, his heart beating in fear at the horrified feeling that was coming out of him.

_"Mana!"_

"I...I..." Allen's eyes widened in horror. Tears then filled his eyes as he could no longer see Bookman in his eyes but somewhere else. That place was exactly like Hell. He was there, trapped in the middle of the licking flames that were happily devouring everything away. His eyes looked frantically for his beloved foster father, but realised he wasn't there.

_"Mana, where are you? Where are you?" Allen screamed at a sudden piece of wood from the ceiling that fell beside him. The heat was slowly torturing him, burning his skin slowly and melting his flesh within that thin piece of skin. He was screaming crazily and hysterically, just wishing that someone would notice._

_He did not want to die. He did not want to die at this moment. _

_"Allen!"_

_He turned around, and was so glad to see the person that he wanted to see the most. But happiness ended instantly, as he saw something crashing towards the adult with his very own eyes. Mana wasn't able to dodge it in time, and crashed down together with that fallen object. There was a loud thud, before he could hear no more._

_"M-Mana?"_

"No! NO!" Allen shrieked, clutching his head and screaming hysterically. Bookman and Lavi were shocked at this and went to stop him quickly before he crashed onto a wall himself. Allen whined loudly, hitting and pushing away anyone that wanted to get close to him.

"Allen! Allen, calm down! Allen!" Lavi yelped as Allen's hand swerved to his nose and hit it rather painfully, causing the redhead to let go and stagger backwards. He knew it wasn't the time to release the grip on Allen, whose consciousness was not stable. As he cleant the blood on his nose and was about to help the gramps, he stopped as he saw Bookman raising his hand.

"G-Gramps, what are you doing?" Bookman did not reply him, as he hit the back of Allen's neck with his hand. The silver-haired teen stopped screaming immediately and went cold, sleeping under his arms. With Lavi's help, they supported Allen back to his bed.

"So...what have you found, gramps?" Lavi asked solemnly as he observed Allen's sleeping face from a distance. Bookman just stood there in silence, before he walked towards the door.

"Gramps?"

"He is someone whom we cannot put our guard down, Lavi. Remember that." Lavi's eyes widened at those hurtful words, but it all made sense, though in a cruel way.

* * *

Kanda leaned against the wooden door of his home, staring silently at the darkened sky which signalled that a storm was approaching. His hair was not tied up today, the strands flying across his eyes which were gazing at the moving clouds constantly travelling from one area to another. He felt slight wetness on his arms and shoulders, as it started to drizzle slowly. People were hurrying to nearby shelters as the drizzle was getting heavier. Loud splashes could be heard from the distance as they rushed through the streets. Soon, umbrellas of different colours could be seen, ranging from red to black. Somehow, this amazed him slightly, lifting up his boredom a little.

His dead sapphire eyes glanced around, eyeing anyone who might be suspicious or ' suitable for his next kill'. He was always imaginating the future outcome, whether this person would become his next prey to satisfy his desire of killing. He would vision the process of his killing clearly and vividly in his head, seeing blood splattering all over the place, his or her screams piercing through the air till it shattered the windows in an old building which no one would notice the corpse until a few days later. His sword would cut at a certain angle through their bodies, making sure that it was completely perfect and not messing up the whole body. His final piece was always so beautiful and perfect. Everything was flawless. No one would actually believe that this person was dead.

Yet, whenever he finished his task, as he stared at the lifeless corpse in front of him, he felt a little displeased. It felt like something had gone slightly wrong. It wasn't because of his swordsman skills. One element seemed to be missing; that element which would make everything whole and perfect. He didn't feel satisfied or excited just by the sight of the dead person and the blood that splattered so messily all over the floor and the wall. The gaze in his eyes did not change when he saw the fearsome white look in their eyes. In fact, he felt nothing. No matter how much he killed and how many different ways to kill, everything still stayed the same. And because of this, he concluded that something was missing, and he was going to find it.

He heard laughter from outside, seeing a group of small children playing puddles in the rain. People were streaming on the streets rather quickly, and vehicles honked to one another, as a jam was conjesting the whole road. It felt more solemn during rainy days, their moods somehow not as brightened as during a bright day. Kanda peered at the dark clouds which refused to leave, gathering around this area and pouring all the rain here.

His phone vibrated. Kanda peered at it for a moment, before he flipped it open and listened.

"How have you been?" A low voice was heard. It was the Millennium Earl, and Kanda had not liked that old man calling him personally by cell. It only meant one thing.

"Have you completed the task that I have assigned you about...two weeks ago?" Kanda did not answer. That old man had come to rush him to meet his deadline. In actual, he had already missed the deadline days ago. The raven-haired teen had been avoiding him lately, choosing to stay longer in his house.

"Is it raining at your place?" He asked. Kanda observed the pelting of the rain which was getting harder. People started to leave, the street becoming emptier. The vision in front of his eyes was getting blurry.

"I will call you again, and at that time, I hope that it will be done." The line went dead. Kanda slowly took down the phone, staring at the blank wallpaper displayed inside. The rain was getting heavier, its water splashing slightly onto his clothing and his exposed arms. Strong gust of cold wind blew hardly, the temperature slowly dropping fast. Still, Kanda did not feel like entering his house at the moment.

Everything was so meaningless. There was practically nothing that interested him, nothing that pulled his attention to. Life was just like a program, playing the scenes that were meant to happen. There wasn't any surprises at all, which disappointed him a little. The raven-haired teen stretched his hand out a little, feeling the raindrop landed on the tip of his finger.

The rain felt nostalgic. It brought back memories which he did not want to remember, replaying in his head. Now that he thought of it, when he noticed Lenalee and saved her, it was also raining in the afternoon. She was soaked to her skin, looking so pathetic and pitiful, like some abandoned trash. She looked sad, but she wasn't crying. She might have cried too much that all her tears had dried up, as he could see the dry trails of tears at her face. It was so obvious.

Her sight made him remember bad memories; memories that haunted him closely even he was at the depths of hell. In order to cancel that, he decided to keep her to his side.

The silver cross necklace at his neck shimmered brightly even though the sun was not here, the rain endlessly falling from the sky. Kanda took it out and held it gently by his hand, staring at the shimmering surface shining towards his eyes which blinded him slightly. The raven-haired teen frowned, before he put it back in his shirt roughly and closed his eyes.

_"Who...are you?"_

Kanda groaned softly by his lips, before opening his eyes to see rain displayed in front of him. His chect felt unbearably heavy and painful all of a sudden, like it was gradually sinking down by the heavy feeling brought by the heavy rain outside. His saddened expression kept flashing momentarily in his mind, and his heart wrenched.

Was it because of the necklace? The necklace that brought him back countless wrenched memories ever since.

He turned around, his back facing the rain. The door slowly shut in, but the heavy pelting sounds did not seem to become softer. Kanda went to close all the windows and the balcony doors, sinking down on the soft belge sofa with his arms spread across its edges. His eyes saw the profile of the ones that he had to assassinated for the Millennium Earl. He leaned towards the table, picking it up as he stared at the first page. His eyes narrowed as soon as he saw the familiar face of the silver-haired teen.

His head throbbed slightly.

The house phone beside him rang rather loudly, startling him from his thoughts a little. Kanda stretched over to take out the cordless phone and put it at his right ear. He listened, hearing some muffling voice which he couldn't recognise. He waited, peering at the glass panes filled with rain droplets which looked like silver crystals. As he looked closely, he could see his reflections rather clearly; the reflection of his horrifying and disgusting sight.

"Hello?"

Someone spoke, and his heart nearly stopped when he had mistaken that similiar voice to the silver-haired teen. His hand was clutching onto his loose pants tightly, letting himself lose control of his fluatuating emotions for the very first time of his life. But, it turned out to be someone else, and that person was the last one he expected.

"Yuu, it's me."

He could only think of that only person who had the audicity to call him by that forbidden name. He frowned, very sure that he changed all his numbers and moved houses within a day, so that he would not be able to find him, yet why was he able to find his house number and call at this particular moment? Kanda shivered slightly at the coldness of the rain outside, standing up as he walked to get his jacket at his room.

"How have you been, Yuu? You must not have expected me to get your number right?"

Kanda opened the door to his room, seeing the jacket at a distance. As he grabbed it by his hand and was about to walk out, he stopped. He turned around, seeing a particular photo frame on his desk. In it was him and a red-haired teen who always acted like a childish kid. He was always able to smile so radiantly, that pair of emerald eyes twinkling like pretty jewels. He was always able to make people lift up from their depressed moods and make them smile. It was then Kanda realised, how much he was missing that smile of his.

"Why aren't you answering me, Yuu? How long are you going to run away from reality?"

It was then Kanda realised, how much he missed that familiar voice which nearly drowned him, and brought him shivers down his skin. The way he calloused his fingers and his face so gently whenever he was having nightmares of his frightening childhood past. The sapphire blue eyes widened in shock, realising what his thoughts were.

"I don't ask for much, Yuu. I just...want to hear your voice once again."

He was worried for him. How long had this been going on? He wondered, as he put on his jacket and sat down on the couch again, staring at the blank television in front of him. The empty screen displayed his dull and lifeless eyes staring back at him. How long had this type of life been going on?

The rain was getting louder, slowly drowning his voice within its thunderous pour. Kanda slowly closed his eyes, heaving out a very soft sigh.

"Who are you?"

The person at the other receiver felt a little astonished at the words he sent to him. It would be the very first time he spoke to him, and the very last chance he was going to give between the both of them. After all, they were enemies and shouldn't even talk to each other in the first place. Kanda shifted slightly in his seat. Even with all these conditions; even if he drew a clear line between them, were those words a little...too harsh for him?

"I'm glad. I'm really glad. Thank you, Yuu, for speaking to me."

Kanda was slightly stunned at his reply. It was as if he was so satisfied even though his heartless words were meant to push him away from him. The two of them didn't speak for the rest of the moment that seemed so awkward. Even if he had the right to end the call immediately, Kanda didn't put his phone down, holding it close to his ear. He listened, till the end.

"Yuu, why are you going to kill Allen?"

That particular name stung his ear greatly. Kanda growled softly and lowly, feeling angry towards the other who stated his name so lightly, so easily. Why was he so concerned over a stranger? Why was he so keen in finding out the reason to this? Why was he...sounding so worried over that silver-haired teen instead of him? He really wanted to slam the phone down this instant, but realised that he couldn't do it.

"Yuu, I don't know what you are going to do, but you _cannot _kill him. You cannot kill that person, or else..."

Why was he sounding so scared over that midget? Kanda hissed at his recollections that night, rubbing the sides of his head in frustrations. The loud peltings outside was making his headache worse.

"Why?"

"Because..." Suddenly, the line was cut off. Kanda blinked for a moment, staring at the phone which had hung up his call. He then put down the phone and closed his exhausted eyes, replaying the words that the person said earlier on. What puzzled him most, was the last sentence he said to him before the line was cut off. It was like...he was warning him of something.

"You shouldn't chat for too long, Kanda." Kanda turned around sharply to find Rhode standing in the middle of the living room quietly, her golden eyes glinting eerily onto him. He frowned, not pleased with someone stepping into his abode without asking for his permission. Furthermore, when had she arrived in this room without being noticed?

"Who allows you to step in here without my permission?" Kanda hissed coldly, staring darkly at her. She just smiled, totally not affected by his murderous gaze. She looked around, spinning around like a little dancing doll before she stood in front of him. Kanda just stared at her, not scared of a little girl who could do anything to him. He eyed her, suspecting that she had been eavedropping his conversation for the whole while.

"Sorry for that, but I am here to deliver Millennium Earl's words." Kanda's eyes narrowed at her words. When did the Millennium Earl know this place? He was sure he didn't tell anyone, and at the first call he received, that old man didn't sound like he knew the place that he was currently in. He peered at the blue-haired girl who was sitting rather comfortably on a couch in extreme irritation. He always hated little kids who dared to step into the adult's space with such an innocent face, but Rhode was different. She wasn't a kid. He wondered whether she was considered as a kid anyway.

"The Millennium Earl doesn't know that you live here. I found this place first," Rhode said, staring at him. She always had the power to see straight through people's thoughts. Kanda grunted in reply, wishing that she should just leave. Her golden eyes twinkled beautifully and cruelly in the darkness, constantly reminding him of his cursed role in which he had to fulfil. Kanda clenched his hands slowly at that thought.

"You have other cases to do besides this one, but the Earl seriously hopes that you can work harder into giving him satisfactory results."

Kanda's eyes narrowed, feeling his stomach churned painfully a little. Her cruel gaze was stabbing into him hardly; like he was poisoned by it. The cases did not seem to bring up his mood either. The raven-haired teen turned away from her gaze, staring at the porcelain vase at the back.

"Of course, do not forget that current person in your profile. The Millennium Earl has high expectations from you, and hopes to see some results from you soon. So there..." Her voice went softer. Kanda turned and stared at her previous position, but no one was there. He felt his hurting head, the long strands of his hair flying across his vision. He turned sideways, surprised to find the balcony doors opened. Pale sunlight could be seen entering the room from the glass panes.

He realised that the rain had finally stopped.

How long was he going to run away from reality? He was not very sure, but maybe there wasn't any reality in his world at all. It was just a despicable dream that he selfishly clinged onto tightly, and how it changed completely and so easily by just a slight movement. Just like the water puddle which changes the reflection when something very light falls on its surface. His world was like that, always changing.

Forever changing.

* * *

Lavi stared at the phone which was cut off abruptly, before he sighed and put down the phone. His emerald eyes dwelled for a while, before they settled on the rain pelting softly behind the firm glass panes.

He had finally heard Kanda's voice. After so many years of endless search, to the extent of giving up, he had finally found his number, and went to call him. His voice still didn't change, a beautiful yet low tone that rang so deeply inside his ears and mind. It was something, and the only thing which he could keep to remember him.

The world was forever changing. He could not imagine what the final outcome would be; what exactly would happen between Kanda and him. It was something which he did not want to imagine at all; a scene in which either one of them fell. He did not want to hurt his precious and important friend, one whom he cherished more than himself.

Lavi stared at the rain solemnly. It was raining very hard today. He could only see the shapes and sizes of the buildings rather vaguely.

He couldn't remember the memories he had with Kanda anymore. Afterall, he was the one who chose to erase the past away. When he felt regret, he always reminded himself of his current job and that a Bookman did not need to have a heart. It was unnecessary. It would only be a burden for him. However, everything just sounded like a pathetic excuse.

Because of this job, he had to leave. It wasn't really leaving, but abandoning. Abandoning his hometown, everything that was here was going to be abandoned, and that included Kanda as well. He didn't inform Kanda when he left, and doubted that the raven-haired teen cared anyway. He must be celebrating at a corner, he assumed. But as he was standing here, staring longingly at his hometown which he was going to throw away, he felt an unbearable heavy weight at his shoulders, slowly sinking him downwards. His feelings could not be described at that time.

And now, the both of them were going to meet again. This time, as enemies. Lavi laughed at that thought. It felt...nostalgic.

"And you asked me why can't you kill Allen?" Lavi murmured softly to himself, turning towards his bed as he leaned his head gently against the soft mattress, his fingers playing with his red hair. Even though he treasured the friendship between the both of them; even though he wished that they could become more than just friends, there is always something which he cannot avoid in life.

Something inevitable. No one can ever change history, and never will. But even so, he wished that he could remember all the good memories he had with Kanda. Lavi smiled, staring at the small photo of a raven-haired teen taken when he was just ten. After a few seconds, his expression changed.

"You cannot kill Allen, Yuu. You can't."

_It is because...that person isn't Allen._

* * *

_He was laughing, so happy that someone had given him a warm home, so happy that the person welcomed him warmly as part of his family. He finally had a home; a home to stay and a home to keep his identity. He wasn't one abandoned kid anymore. He...had a home._

_As he took Mana's hand and skipped happily with him down the solemn street, he suddenly felt that something was wrong. That he was forgetting something really important. He stopped skipping and stood there, feeling slightly confused._

_"What's wrong, Allen?" Mana asked, staring down at him. He continued staring ahead, until at that particular moment when he felt someone walking past him. His silver eyes widened in shock, turning behind instantly. He could only see a glimpse of raven-blue strands floating past his eyes for a split second, before it was gone. He turned behind quickly, wanting to see that pair of eyes again, but no one was there. At this instant, he couldn't hear Mana's voice, and couldn't hear the people who were around him. His heart wavered slightly in fear, seeing the sight in front of him. Everything looked so real, yet he had a feeling that all of these did not belong to him. Mana shouldn't be here. These people shouldn't be here._

_He shouldn't be here._

_Was this...one of his memory?_

_He didn't know what happened. Tears just came out and flowed down his cheeks uncontrollably._

Allen's eyes snapped open. He blinked for a moment, before he felt tears streaming down his face suddenly. The pain at his chest was not ceasing, there for a reason. He slowly sat up and sniffed slightly, wiping away the tears and blowing his nose with a tissue. He stared down at his blanket rather dejectedly, before he broke down again.

Just now, what was that?

* * *

Please review! Many thanks!


	5. Crimson Red

It has been a long time since I update TBA! I am so sorry for the wait, everyone! I have been thinking of how I should proceed with this story and after a series of considerations, I have decided on how the story should progress! Now, I present all of you readers with a brand-new chapter 5 which focuses on the stoic and emotionless Kanda doing his duty as an assassin. In the previous chapter, I have given all of you a preview of chapter 5 right? I realise that the whole chapter is too long, thus I am going to split it into three parts, chapter 5, 6 and 7. Lenalee's part will only enter in chapter 7.

**WARNING: VIOLENCE, SLASH**

**Rated T+ to be safe for this chapter. Enjoy~! Please please remember to give a review after you read this chapter and tell me your opinions! Thank you very much everyone!**

**~SingingBlues  
**

* * *

**Chapter 5: Crimson Red  
**

_"I'm sorry."_

_Two of them faced each other, their swords pointing to each other openly. The wind roared fiercely through the surroundings, the battle turning into an intense one. No one was willing to give way, fighting to their ends. _

_"For what?"_

_"For betraying you."_

_"I don't care. I only need to defeat my enemy obstructing our way, and that's you." _

_His head was downcast. After that, he lifted it up and produced a faint smile, which astonished the other slightly._

_"I'm glad. You have made the right choice." He slowly lowered down his sword. Seeing the opponent's eyes widened at this, he dropped his weapon, spreading out his arms towards his death's door._

_"Kill me." He closed his eyes._

_Kill me...so that I can be free again._

_xxx  
_

He did not know how many times he had seen that particular dream, about someone who was standing in the darkness, his lock of hair fluttering in the direction of the wind. It looked foreign, yet the feeling it brought to him was strangely nostalgic, as though it had really happened. His chest hurt so much that he couldn't breathe for a second, and at that time, he badly wanted to reach out to this mysterious person, who was making him so flustered and irritated, and expose his real identity, but all he got was nothing, and before he knew it, he was back in his room again.

Kanda grabbed his black hairband at the table as he scooped up his lock of raven hair and tied it into a neat ponytail. He made sure that there wasn't any strand of his hair sticking out of place, before he took his black gloves and put it on. He peered at the list of names that he was given by that person. His eyes narrowed with slight anger as he remembered this afternoon's incident.

_You have other cases to do besides this one, but the Earl seriously hopes that you can work harder into giving him satisfactory results._

The night breeze slowly entered through the windows, brushing past his earlobes gently as it hissed softly inside. The room was dimly-lit, his tall shadow cast on the walls rather clearly. The whole place was silent, apart from his breathing and the soft thumps of his heart beating in rhythm. After putting on his black belt loosely around his waist, he flipped open his phone and took down the address of his next victim.

His lips parted slightly. The wind began to howl louder, the screeching of the crows heard from a few distances away. Kanda stopped as he flipped his phone shut and slipped it into his pocket. As he turned around, his coat moved, making a crisp and clear sound. The raven-haired teen took the sword lying on the table and opened the door in front of him, walking out of his apartment.

His dark boots thudded hardly on the ground, the sound echoing through the whole corridor. He walked forward, clasping his sword tightly. That pair of dark sapphire eyes shone fiercely in the lights, constantly searching for preys. He was a predator; an assassin seeking for the lives of those pathetic humans who did not deserve to live. He did not sympathise, nor would he show any mercy to anyone. He would cut and slain anyone without slightest hesitation.

He turned around a corner, approaching the lifts. As he stepped up, the wind suddenly changed direction and was blowing at his left side. The remaining strands fluttered across his eyes, blurring his vision. He slowly brushed them away with gentleness, pressing the lift button at the same time. After that, he waited.

The silver metal necklace at his neck jingled a little. He gritted his teeth and grabbed the metal chain, having the sudden urge to pull this off and threw it downstairs. He couldn't take it off. It wasn't that he did not want, but he couldn't.

Kanda redrew his hand and slowly clenched it. The lift reached the floor and opened its doors. He strode in with quick steps as he closed the doors. He leaned against the wall as the lift started to descend.

_I'm sorry._

_You cannot kill that person. You can't, because..._

The lift jerked slightly as it came to a halt and opened its doors. Kanda stepped out as he made his way to the victim's house. He pulled his warm coat closer to his body, walking down the street along the roadside. The whole place was silent, as everyone was already asleep at this extreme late hour, and he definitely had a good reason to support his desire to kill. The chill was piercing into his skin, sending shivers down his body, but, when it comes to work, he was definitely serious.

He walked past a tree which was withering. Kanda blinked as he stopped and stared at that area. Usually, that girl would be standing here waiting for him, but she wasn't here this time. He wondered whether she had an assignment handed to her. Well, it wasn't like he wanted her to stay here and wait for him. It would only become more troublesome when he was doing his job. Kanda snorted as he turned and continued along his way.

The leaves on the trees rustled noisily in the night. His ears pricked up, picking up sounds that was a few metres behind him. His head was still downcast, the strands of his hair covering the side view of his face. It was so peaceful today. So peaceful, so quiet...it just felt so nice. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, smirking widely. It was just the perfect moment to add interesting things to make everything even more exciting.

"You!" A vehicle stopped beside the road as someone called out to him. Kanda slowly stopped in his tracks.

"Where are you going at this late hour?" He asked. The raven-haired teen did not answer. Or rather, he chose not to answer to such ridiculous and stupid questions asked by a random stupid police officer. He could hear the sound of the car door opening, as the person stepped out and was approaching him. He still did not move from his position, until the person was metres away from him.

"Why aren't you answering?" He asked, putting his filthy hand at his shoulder. His long raven hair moved in the air slightly by the wind, before settling down behind his back. That calm and expressionless face did not change at first, as he slowly turned and stared coldly at him. That plump police officer seemed to be taken aback by his stoic behaviour, but he remained calm as he took his cuffs out and handcuffed his hands immediately.

"If you cannot say anything here, I have to take you to the police station for further interrogation. It would be better not to struggle." He continued to watch quietly at the whole process, as though he was waiting for that particular opportunity to start his next move. That naive policeman did not sense a thing at all. Or rather, he should say that he was just a beginner in this.

"Let's go," He said, still taking his shoulder by his hand as he led him to the car. At this moment, Kanda clenched his hands into tight fists as he used all his strength and pulled the handcuffs apart. As the metal bits fell onto the ground with a hard clank, the policeman stopped as he slowly turned to face him, slightly shocked at this. However, he wasn't just going to leave it like that.

"What are you doing?" The policeman brandished out his gun, but Kanda saw through this instantly and kicked the weapon off his hand using his leg. That adult was starting to panic as he looked back and saw his weapon on the ground. His body started trembling, fearing the one standing in front of him. Even so, he showed his fists, ready for a fight. He wasn't going to give up at this moment, but he wasn't going to let him off as well.

"Che." Kanda reached out to his hilt and slowly pulled out his sword. The policeman's eyes slowly widened in horror. His lip was shaking as his trembling finger was pointing at him.

"You...You are..." Kanda slowly smirked as he walked up to him and slashed his whole body down to his legs. That human gasped and coughed as blood spilled out of his body, splattering all over the ground and on the road. His lips continued to move silently, as though he wanted to finish that sentence, before he finally died. The swordsman stood in front of the corpse and just stared at this gruesome yet magnificent view for a few minutes, before he slowly gave a smile, bringing up his sword stained with blood as he took a lick from it. He then turned and left the scene, walking his way to his final destination.

"Let me go! I swear I will not do this again! I swear, please!" That person was kneeling down and hugging his knees tightly, refusing to let go. Kanda growled as he lifted up his leg and kicked his chest hardly, sending him flying onto the wall. He groaned as his back hit the wall, before his whole body slowly slumped onto the floor. As he looked up, Kanda was already standing in front of him.

"Please...don't kill me..." He pleaded in a soft and desperate voice. He couldn't see the killer very well by the little amount of moonlight, but he could sense the dark aura and the hard gaze from that pair of cold eyes. His hands trembled as he tried to search for anything which could turn this whole situation around, but this was stopped when Kanda noticed his aim and stepped on his hand hardly, crushing all the bones inside. He howled in great pain as he took back his hand which was already maimed. The person gritted his teeth as he stared angrily at the one who did that to him, but that darkly gaze did not change as it brought in fear, bringing psychological impact onto him.

Out of a sudden, he started laughing. Kanda raised his eyebrow in slight curiosity.

"Are you...a fool?" He asked. Kanda's eyes narrowed at those words. He slowly stood up and took out his spectacles, throwing them aside. He stared at him, giving a comical look on his face as he walked towards him.

"What are you exactly doing? You may not know it, but the Millennium Earl is just using you. He makes use of you to do the dirty jobs while he just sits on his chair comfortably and enjoys his days. You are just being deceived by this old man!" He said, standing centimetres across him. He raised his hand and slowly touched his face gently. That feeling stung him slightly. He leaned closer to his face, wanting to see the expression that the raven-haired teen was making. Those dirty fingers travelled along his face as it settled down at his lips.

"Why not you quit this job, and join me? I can assure you that you will lead a greater and better life than this, because you deserve it."

He parted the lips with his fingers. Seeing no reaction from the swordsman, he grinned as he inserted a finger inside. Kanda's eyes widened slightly as he felt a foreign and weird substance wriggling inside, bringing him a strange sensation. He tried to move his legs, but was blocked by his leg pressing close to his abdomen. He frowned as he glared at the lowly human who dared to do this. The victim just smiled when he saw the expression that he wanted.

"I couldn't believe that you could make such a face." Kanda grimaced as that leg pressed harder at his groin, making him shudder a little. He was rammed onto a wall next, as both hands blocked his only way of escape. That finger continued to move around and play inside his mouth, to his complete disgust.

"You are just a perfect specimen! I haven't seen anyone who looks so beautiful and feminine. You might even be better than the women outside. I cannot believe that the Millennium Earl just ignores your beauty and throws you around like you are nothing to him. I won't do that, for certain." Before Kanda raised his sword and cut his head off, that person used his hand and just knocked the weapon off his hand easily, to his astonishment.

"I know you will do that. I won't be deceived by it," He said as he smiled. Kanda hissed fiercely as he glared at him. That evil glint did not escape from his sharp eyes, as he leaned closer to him, so close that he could hear his breaths by his ears very clearly. He felt the walls, trying to find a way to squeeze out of here.

"You have nowhere to run, Kanda Yuu. You are mine."

* * *

"What? What are you joking about, Rhode?" Tyki asked from his seat as he peered at the blue-haired girl who was sitting on the floor near the fireplace, playing with her ragged dolls happily. She turned her head to the adult as she made a face.

"Haven't you been listening to what I say earlier on, Uncle Tyki?"

"It is because I have heard everything that you said, that I have asked such a question. That is just impossible. You should know his character, Rhode. He does not allow any mistakes to happen." Rhode gave a laugh as she put the dolls onto the floor neatly, before she turned herself around, sitting right across the curly-haired man who had a book with him. Tyki would always have the habit of sitting down quietly and enjoyed himself to a short section of reading, though he was busy most of the time. She peered at him silently, wondering what his real self was.

"I know. I'm just wondering about this little possibility that Kanda will be trapped within the enemy's clutches instead of the other way round. Sometimes a change would be more interesting." Tyki frowned as he stared at her, but she had a point as well. Would there be a chance whereby that emotionless yet efficient swordsman made a mistake and fell into his enemy's trap? No matter how he thought, it seemed slightly unrealistic. That person would not allow his real self to be revealed to others, even to them.

"So what do you think, Uncle Tyki? I really, really want to see that one day! It's slightly boring to see that expressionless face all the time. He should show his emotions to us more often."

"What are you children doing?" They turned around to see the Millennium Earl at the door. Rhode jumped up and ran towards the adult, hopping around him like a child. Tyki just smiled as he waved to him.

"Hi, Earl."

"Hi, Tyki-pon." Tyki frowned again.

"That name is really damn hilarious. What a cute name." The twins were standing behind the Earl as they glanced into the dark room. Tyki just made a face.

"Thanks for that, David."

"Hahahahaha! What a stupid name! Hahahahaha!" Jasdebi laughed loudly, the light bulb at his head shaking violently as his head moved. As he played with his soft ragged bear in his hands, Rhode went up to him and snatched it away.

"Rhode, give me back my bear!" He whined.

"No way. It looks fun to be tortured," Rhode grinned as she ran away with it, with Jasdebi hot in persuit.

"No! My bear isn't for you to play with! Give it back!" The Millennium Earl laughed at this, completely enjoying all of these. Tyki just sighed as he took the book in his hands, deciding to just ignore this ruckus and continued in his reading, but Rhode's previous question bugged him slightly. Would there be a time whereby Kanda would face problems during his mission? That person had never once failed in bringing what they wanted.

"What are you thinking about, Tyki-pon?" The Millennium Earl sat on his favourite rocking chair as he took a magazine lying on the table and flipped it open.

"Stop with that name, Earl," He said, leaning back against the chair. The Earl laughed again.

"Why not? The name suits you. As David has said, it is indeed a cute name!" Tyki glanced at David who was trying hard not to laugh at that statement. He closed his eyes as he rubbed the sides of his forehead to ease the headache, sighing again.

"Hey, Earl."

"What?" He said, his attention still at the magazine as he took his cup of coffee and sipped it gently before putting back onto the table. The candle lights gave a light flicker as the wind entered their room, slowly bringing down the temperature.

"Do you think Kanda would meet a mishap? I mean, is there a possibility in this?" Rhode and Jasdebi stopped running, as they turned and faced the adult. David looked up from his position. The whole place turned silent instantly as all attention was onto the Earl who had stayed quiet the whole time.

"What are you talking about, Tyki-pon?" The Millennium Earl finally said in a calm manner, to their slight astonishment. Tyki raised his eyebrow in slight confusion.

"Do you know him for the first time?" Tyki blinked at the question.

"Uh...no?" He replied. The Earl closed the magazine as he turned and faced him. Slowly, he started to smile.

"That person...has no flaws at all." The Earl sighed as he turned to the picture frame of him and his little white friend standing beside him.

"He's...a complete devil."

xxx

"What? Have you given up on yourself?" The person asked. The raven-haired swordsman just remained at his position, not moving nor struggling. The man laughed loudly, getting exactly what he wanted. He took out his finger, trailing along his ear lobes and neck till his hand reached his chest which was slightly exposed. His nails gave a slight scratch, making a light red mark at that area.

"Leave that old man and come to me, Kanda. I promise you that you will have everything that you want. I will provide you a home and a shelter. It would be far better than to stay and do that man's dirty jobs," He said, giving him a light hug by his shoulders.

"Are you done?" The man just blinked at the sudden question. He stared at the raven-haired teen, and was taken aback by that pair of predator eyes glowering at him. Before he knew it, he was being thrown onto the ground.

"What...what are you doing?" He hollered, coughing and wheezing as he clutched his hurting chest, glaring at the dark figure standing a few metres across him. His eyes flashed darkly at him for a second, frightening him a little. Kanda walked up to him in slow and soft steps, forcing him into a corner as he held his sword at his face. As he stared at him with a cold expression for a short moment, a playful smirk appeared on his face.

"Is that all you can do?"

His eyes widened. The moon slowly shifted its position, going behind the floating clouds passing by. As the light faded, the beautiful silver blade was raised up in the air. Seconds later, there were only choked sounds, the clear splatters of blood, before a soft thud echoed through the empty room. He just stood there in silence, his hand holding onto his bloody weapon as blood trailed along his fingers and slowly dripped onto the floor. All that were left was the remains of the body and the stench of blood lingering in the still air.

The clouds travelled past, the moon finally coming out into the open once again. He stared at the dark pool of blood, the anger he had slowly disappearing as his eyes turned cold and emotionless once again. The night breeze came in and brushed his face slightly. The feeling stung a little, but he still couldn't feel much. He turned around, his long raven hair slapping to his right shoulder as he walked out of this place. As he stepped out, facing the empty streets and roads, he took a deep breath, peering at the night sky which seemed as lonely as him.

"Che." With that, he stepped out and disappeared into the night.

* * *

It was five in the early morning. The ancient clock in the living room rang loudly for five times, reminding the ones who were living in this house that it was already five. Most of the people would still be sleeping soundly on their comfortable beds, not willing to wake up at such an early hour, but to Allen Walker, it was something that he couldn't complain.

"It's already five? Gosh, I'm late!" He shouted, running around the whole house to get himself ready and grab a piece of bread for his breakfast, before he took off towards the main door and took the keys at the front table. He slipped his feet into his black boots before he opened the door and went out, closing the door behind him. After taking his sling bag by his shoulders, Allen headed out to the bus stop to catch the bus to his workplace.

It wasn't surprising to find such a large crowd waiting at such a small and narrow bus stop at this early hour, as people were getting to their workplaces at this time as well. Allen bit his lip as he squeezed through the people, hoping to be standing near to the front such that he could board the bus which would be packed at this timing. The silver-haired teen grimaced at the pushes and the budges, before he finally found a rather good place to stand.

"Hey, did you read the latest news? There is another person found dead in his apartment."

"I heard that he was a manager holding a rather high position in a big corporate company! He's a millionaire and has owned many properties!"

"Really? I cannot believe this!"

Allen frowned as he overheard the conversation by the people standing next to him. He wondered who that murderer might be. Didn't he know that what he did was causing fear and uncertainty among these people? He might think that killing people was interesting, but he could never understand the feeling and pressure that they were dealing with. It was just a childish act, a way of running away from reality.

"I heard that he was the same person! The one also known as the Black Assassin! Didn't you read the newspaper two months ago?"

Allen's eyes grew wide with shock. He could only think of one particular scenario that he had encountered weeks ago. It was something that he would never forget in his whole life as a normal teenager. Just by recalling that incident sent cold shivers down his spine.

_Kill me._

He didn't know why he said that. After that night, he did not appear again, and neither could he find that stranger who just stepped into his life and completely ruined everything. Allen made a face as he crossed his arms in slight annoyance. He only knew that he was wearing in full black, using a sword as his weapon, and he had a feeling of being cornered when that blade touched his throat.

Now, as he recalled the things that happened around him, he realised that something was amiss. Something was wrong with this town. Murders were happening everywhere, each at random places. It was as though...that killer was trying to find someone among these killings. This someone...who was the right person...

The bus arrived at the bus stop, and everyone squeezed to his area in an attempt to board the bus. Allen managed to get through the crowd and step onto the bus. He stood at a corner of the standing area, facing the opened windows. Muffled sounds and whispers filled the air, before the bus started heading for the next destination. The silver-haired teen just gazed out of the windows blankly, deep into thoughts.

He couldn't understand why he needed to be killed. After all, he was just a student and a normal teenage boy. He did nothing, and did not commit any crimes. He had rather good relationships with the people around him. He always did good deeds, thus he shouldn't have made any enemies outside. Suddenly, out of the blue, that person wanted to assassinate him. What joke was that person exactly pulling?

If it wasn't for Lavi, he would have been dead by now. That redhead just popped out of nowhere and saved him, as if he knew that this would happen. Who exactly was Lavi? Did he know the things about him? What was going on here?

He reached out for the bell with difficulty as he pressed it, waiting for the bus to stop. As the bus reached the next stop and opened the doors, it took him some time to say some excuse-mes and squeeze through the large crowd of people, before he could alight and took deep breaths of fresh air. As he turned and was walking to his workplace which was just metres away, he noticed a familiar figure standing across the traffic lights, talking to someone. As he looked closer, he realised that it was none other than Lavi.

He was about to call out to him when he stopped, frowning slightly. Why was he with a group of police? He was talking rather calmly with them, so that would only mean that they were acquaintances. But why was he with them? Why was he so friendly towards them? His eyes just widened in shock as Lavi saw him from a distance.

"Allen?" Allen clenched his hands tightly as he turned and walked away. Just _how much _did that person know about him?

He walked through the crowd and turned to his right, wanting to get away from that area, wanting to erase what he had just seen. What was he doing? He had really treated Lavi like a friend, yet he couldn't brush away the fear and the slight anger that came to him at the same time.

"Allen!" The silver-haired teen quickened his pace as he started to run. He knew that Lavi would not just leave it like this without an explanation. He ran around the whole streets, from corners to corners, but he couldn't seem to brush that fellow away. Just as he was about to enter the building where he worked, something grabbed his hand and stopped him. Allen gasped in slight astonishment as he was being pulled backwards, his feet stumbling for a few steps before he saw the emerald eyes of the other.

"What?" He asked coldly.

"I was about to say that! What happened to you? Why didn't you stop when I call you?" Lavi asked. Allen hissed as he slapped the hand off and stared at him hardly.

"I don't remember being acquaintances with you." The redhead just frowned at the statement, before he started laughing.

"You couldn't remember anything? You must be dreaming, Allen! Don't you recall the day when I save you?"

"Stop it, Lavi. Who exactly are you? What do you want from me? How much do you know about me?" Allen asked in return, stunning Lavi for a moment. The two of them just stood there for a few minutes, silent.

"If you are not going to say anything, I'm leaving."

"You should know it very well after that incident, Allen." Allen stopped in his tracks as Lavi started to speak.

"What about it?"

"Someone...wants you dead." Allen's eyes slowly went wide in shock. He turned around and faced the redhead who was making a serious expression.

"What do you mean by that? Why does that person want me dead?"

"That I...I still don't know."

"Is that why you liaise with the police? Are you working with the police?" Allen asked in frustration. He sighed as he walked around, before he leaned against the wall of a particular building, deciding to calm himself down. Lavi just walked towards him and stopped at his side.

"How much do you know about me, Lavi? From the moment you saved me, I know that something strange is going on here. I don't know you, yet you know me so well that you already knew that this would happen to me. What is this? What is happening to me?" Allen asked in a slight pleading tone, staring at the one who hadn't said anything for the past few minutes.

"I'm sorry, Allen, but you know that I will try my ultimate best to protect you from danger." He said.

"I don't know, Lavi! I don't know anything! Why do you need to protect me? You can just leave me there and let me die!" The silver-haired teen exclaimed.

"What are you talking about, Allen?"

"I don't know. Everything just happened so fast that I couldn't keep up. I'm so tired." He sighed as he felt his hurting forehead with his hand and closed his eyes. He just couldn't comprehend all of these no matter how hard he tried.

Suddenly, he felt a hard tug at his throat, as he found himself in the hands of a robber. Allen blinked as he saw policemen surrounding them. Before he knew it, he felt something pointing dangerously at the side of his forehead.

"Allen!"

"Don't move, or I will shoot this boy!" Allen's eyes widened in horror at that statement. He gasped and coughed at the tightness of his throat, as that large arm was gradually strangling him alive. Most people were screaming at the top of their voices, running away from the scene. The policemen were also pointing their guns at his direction, attempting to shoot this robber when they had the chance.

"You want to die right, boy?" He asked. Allen winced as he stared at the ugly face above him. That robber just smirked back to him in return.

"I heard everything you said. I shall grant your wish today." Allen continued to cough, starting to feel dizzy and lightheaded. As he felt a harder push at the side of his forehead, the sound of the trigger heard, he knew he had to prepare for the worst. He closed his eyes, and as he stayed in that darkness, he waited.

_Do you really want to die, Moyashi?_

"Eh?" Allen opened his eyes as he heard a voice echoing in his head. Simultaneously, shouts rang through the streets all of a sudden. His eyes slowly widened as a young man jumped up and sailed across them. Before he knew what happened, the robber howled in pain as that stranger hit him hardly at his shoulders. He landed on the ground rather lightly, his long raven-coloured hair fluttering down before settling quietly on his shoulders.

"What...what the hell are you doing?" The robber yelled as he turned to face him. As Allen stared, he couldn't shake off a particular eerie feeling that this person brought him. He just patted his shirt for a moment, before he looked up and looked at him with a slight fierce gaze.

"Don't touch my prey."


	6. Prey vs Predator

WARNING: VIOLENCE, SLASH

This chapter is mainly on the battle itself, so it would be pretty long. Please bear with me!

Title changed!

* * *

**Chapter 6: Prey vs Predator**

Allen's eyes slowly widened in shock as someone came by and knocked onto the robber, causing him to lose his concentration for seconds. He knew that he had to use this opportunity that this stranger had given him, thus the moment that large arm was loosened slightly, he tried to get out of his grasp and run away. As he was about to succeed with his plan, he felt a pull at the edge of his sleeve. Then, someone grabbed his arm and spun him around forcefully.

"Don't even try to run away." The robber smirked as he squeezed his arm tightly, causing him to wince. The robber looked around, before he started running away from the scene, taking him away with him.

"Lavi!" Allen shouted for the redhead, but as his eyes met the dark sapphire eyes from that raven-haired stranger, he couldn't help but stare at him for a while. As they were entering the large crowd, passing by many people surrounding them, his lips twitched for a slight second before he turned away, forced to look where he was going.

"Allen! Allen!" Lavi rushed through the crowd of people as he searched for the silver-haired teen, but what bugged him was the appearance of the raven-haired teen who really came at the right moment. He hissed in frustration as he pushed through, taking a lookout for the swordsman at the same time. He did not know why he came here, but if he came here to capture Allen, he wasn't going to allow it.

"Lavi!" Lavi glanced at the side of the road as he saw Bookman standing there, showing a rather calm expression. He ran over to his side, bending down as he panted slightly.

"Jiji, Allen...Allen..."

"I know, but we must do something to the crowd first. The people were too shocked and confused that they are running in different directions. If this keeps going, there will be accidents sooner or later. I need you to calm them down and send them away from the scene."

"But what about Allen? He's being taken hostage! I can't just leave him alone!" Lavi exclaimed, looking around anxiously for the silver-haired teen, but there were simply too many people to take note of.

"Yuu's there, JiJi. You want me to leave him alone?" Lavi asked.

"I know." His eyes widened slightly.

"You...know?" Bookman just turned and observed the current situation calmly.

"For now, we have to calm the crowd down first. Allen will be safe."

"How will he be safe?"

"Go, Lavi." Bookman said firmly once more. Lavi just stared at him for a while, before he turned and walked to the policemen to aid them in leading the people away from the scene. As he looked across the streets, he saw the raven-haired teen standing there, but what stunned him a little was the slight frustrated expression that his eyes portrayed. Lavi wondered whether he was seeing wrongly, because...that wasn't some kind of face Kanda would make. In fact, it was his very first time seeing that. The redhead's eyes narrowed at this, before he turned to speak to one of the policemen approaching him.

* * *

"Let me go!" Allen shouted at the top of his voice, trying to get out of the tight grasp, but the robber was so persistent, refusing to release him. They ran throughout the whole town, jumping over hurdles across the roads and sped around sharp bends to trick the policemen who were chasing after them. The robber would stop a few times and flashed out his gun, frightening the passersby who had exactly no idea what was going on, before he started running again. The silver-haired teen gasped for air as he tried to keep up, but slipped as he fell onto a puddle of water at the side of the road.

"You...you are really useless!" The robber chided.

"S-Sorry for that," Allen muttered under his breath, trying to get up to his feet. This was the perfect opportunity to get away from him, but as he stood up, he grimaced at the sharp pain from his left ankle. He hobbled up to the pavement as he paced with slow and careful steps, trying not to aggravate his injury further, but the moment he went up, the robber grabbed him by his wrist again and pulled him along roughly, causing him to stumble as his injured foot stepped hardly on the ground for balance. Allen hissed in pain as he fell onto the ground.

"Why are you like this? You are going to slow me down!" The robber yelled.

"Then leave me alone!" Allen exclaimed as he touched his left ankle which started to swell fast. He could feel the slaps of the wind blowing roughly in the opposite direction. Shouts and cries filled the whole place, and footsteps could be heard everywhere. He felt splashes of water on his face. People were running all over the town, some almost stepped onto him. The silver-haired teen winced as he held his head low and stayed there, wishing that someone could just save him.

"Watch out!" Allen turned and saw a vending machine flying towards him, out of nowhere. His eyes slowly widened in horror at the large thing which was slowly descending onto him.

Suddenly, a large noise of crushing was heard. Allen opened his eyes and blinked for a moment, before he looked up and saw someone's foot at the tilting vending machine which was about to touch the floor within seconds, yet he stopped it, with just his foot alone. He shifted his gaze and saw the raven-haired stranger, to his astonishment. His eyes slightly widened at his gaze that brought him the chills. That pair of dark sapphire eyes looked...scary.

Kanda grunted under his breath, as he contracted his leg for a moment, before kicking off that useless thing out of his sight, which crashed somewhere with a loud thud. More screams were heard from a distance, followed by the sound of the car siren ringing throughout the whole neighbourhood. He then turned and walked towards Allen, to his slight horror. At that instant, he knew he had to escape from this person. The silver-haired teen felt the ground with slight frustration, wanting to move away from his position, but his ankle wouldn't budge no matter how he commanded. He couldn't get his eyes off that cold yet fierce gaze from him. It reminded him of that time, because that particular assassin who wanted to kill him also had the same pair of cold eyes.

"Stop there!" Allen turned and saw some policemen crowding around the two of them. Kanda stopped whatever he was doing and turned to face those troublesome humans that always like to interfere in what he was doing.

"What the hell are you doing, throwing that vending machine into an area where there are so many people?" Allen's eyes widened at that statement, before turning to stare at the silent one standing there who hadn't said anything. He looked so extremely calm, his eyes showing no fear within them. Didn't he consider this as a threat to him? They were police, not just any people!

Kanda stared at them for a few minutes, before he turned to stare at Allen who stared at him in slight bewilderment. He then reached towards his wrist and took it, pulling the silver-haired teen up to his feet. Allen stumbled at the sudden pull, his hands unconsciously reached out for his arm for support. Making sure that he was standing properly, Kanda turned to face the police again.

"That vending machine is heading towards him. Do you think I can just leave that alone?" He responded. Allen's eyes slowly went wide in slight astonishment. The reason why he did that was to...save him?

"Even so, you could just put the vending machine down beside you! If you have the strength to throw it far, why couldn't you use that monstrous strength of yours to lift up the machine and put it down?" Allen could see the slight twitch from raven-haired teen's brows at that remark one of the policemen made. Although he knew that he shouldn't say such rude remarks to the stranger, but it was partially that person's fault as well.

"I didn't think properly at that time. I only know that I need to save this person. That is all," Kanda said. His hand held his wrist once again as he turned around, while Allen released his grip at his arm and followed him.

"Hey you! Where are you going?" The raven-haired swordsman stopped in his tracks for a moment. As Allen wondered what was going on here, Kanda turned around and gave the coldest and murderous glare towards the group of irritating people who asked so many questions.

"Are you all going to stop me?" It shut the mouths of the policemen instantly. Kanda snorted as he turned and started to walk. Allen didn't know what he was exactly doing, and why this person was willing to sacrifice himself to save someone that he didn't even know, but his senses just told him that it was okay to follow this person. At the same time, he would search for Lavi and get out of this horrid place.

They had walked for a distance, passing by crowds of people who were avoiding the scene as well. The piercing sound of gun fire was picked up a few metres away. It looked like the robber was still running away from his pursuers. At this moment, he felt the shocking pain of his injured ankle coming back to him. He had totally forgotten all about it, probably from the moment this raven-haired teen stepped in till now.

Someone ran towards him, bumping him by his shoulder. Allen hissed as he slipped and fell onto the ground, gripping onto his broken ankle which started to hurt like hell. Noticing that he had lost grip of the silver-haired teen, Kanda stopped and turned back.

"You don't need to take me along. Please...go." The last thing that he wanted was to bring burden to others. Allen looked at his ankle, wondering what he should do from now onwards. He shouldn't bring more trouble to that stranger who had saved him earlier. Even so, he doubted he could move as well. He closed his eyes, wondering what he was doing. He shouldn't have come here in the first place.

"Che." Allen's eyes widened. Before he knew it, he felt something gripping his wrist as he was pulled up to his feet again. He winced at the sharp pain the broken ankle brought him, before he turned towards the raven-haired teen who was still here. He frowned, wanting to ask why he was still here instead of running away. Why was he doing this to a stranger that he didn't know? Why was he having such an emotionless expression even though he knew he wasn't like that?

"Let's go." He took his arm and supported him as the two of them walked forward together. Allen looked at the wet ground, his mind going back to the scene at night where he was targeted by someone who was going to kill him. He couldn't brush off that eerie feeling that this young man brought him. Whenever he was with him, it would bring back that horrid memory that he didn't want to remember. He couldn't explain why as well. He grimaced as he walked, but he knew he had to bear with it for now.

"You are finally here." Kanda stopped in his tracks. Allen blinked when he felt that they weren't moving forward, as he looked up to see what was happening. To his slight horror, the robber was standing in front of them. Allen gripped onto the other's arm tightly, trying to chase away the fear which was coming back to him.

"Are you avoiding me...Allen?"

Allen's eyes widened, wishing that the latter did not notice his shock, but smug smirk at his lips showed that he had discovered his little secret. Before he knew what was happening, the robber was already between the two of them, his hand reaching out for his face. Allen released his hands and stumbled backwards, staring fearfully at the one moving towards him. What the hell was going on here? Why did this person know his name?

"Wh-What..." He was at a loss for words.

"As I told you, you have nowhere to run, Allen Walker." Allen winced and gave a muffled cry as his back crashed onto a lamppost. He frowned as the robber slammed his hand against the hard surface of the lamppost, shaking the whole thing violently. He realised that he couldn't move from his position anymore. He was completely trapped.

"I have been spending so much time finding you, Allen. I have never expected you to make use of your powers to that extreme. You should have died together with the rest."

"What...are you talking about?" Allen asked weakly. It was the first time meeting this person, yet why was he saying things that he couldn't understand? Why did he mean by that? What powers? Died together with the rest? What was he talking about?

"What...so it is true that you have lost your memory after stepping into this world. It looks like the Noah power you obtain is too large for you to handle."

"Get out of my way." Allen's eyes went wide as Kanda was just standing behind the robber all of a sudden. He lifted up his leg and kicked him hardly on his chest, sending him flying upwards before crashing down onto a nearby vehicle. The silver-haired teen's legs finally gave way as he slumped down onto the ground, dazed.

"What am I doing?"

"So you are the rumoured Black Assassin. What monstrous strength and good reflexes. I should not underestimate you," The robber laughed as he wiped away the blood at the side of his lips, jumping off from the vehicle which had a large dent on it and landed on the ground. Allen blinked in shock as he turned and stared at the both of them. What was he talking about? Who was the rumoured Black Assassin?

"Geez, no matter where I travel, your face still looks the same, Kanda Yuu. Still as bad-tempered as usual. But..." He smiled as he sprinted towards the raven-haired teen within seconds and spun his body, sending his feet to his face. Allen gasped as the feet crushed the face for seconds, before he flew and crashed onto the side of the road. The robber then spun and landed on his two feet gracefully, staring at the direction where Kanda had fallen.

"Are you dead, Kanda?" He called out, before he broke into laughter. Allen peered at the dump where he had landed, wondering whether he was alright. That movement wasn't any normal human being could make! What exactly was this person? As he thought, he froze momentarily. What if...he was the same person who wanted him dead?

_Someone...wants you dead._

There were loud noises coming from the mess, as Kanda slowly stood up from his place, facing the robber metres away. The robber caught a glimpse of the raven-haired swordsman alive, and he couldn't help but smirk in joy. It wouldn't be much fun if that monster died from just a mere free throw. That was just his welcoming gift. He didn't even use much of his strength yet.

"You won't die so easily from this right, Kanda?" He said as he jumped and leaped from vehicle to vehicle, approaching him at a great speed. As he faced the raven-haired swordsman above, he did a somersault, lifting up his whole body with his two hands supported his whole weight on the surface of the car before he dived straight for him. Kanda noticed this, as he lowered his body slightly and tilted to the left, dodging his right leg which was aiming for his shoulder. He bent down, seeing the one sailing above him, before he did a sharp turn around and aimed his fist upwards, punching him deep at his ribs. The robber's eyes widened as he coughed out blood, before he crashed onto the ground with a loud thud. Kanda glared at the fallen figure as he raised his leg in an attempt to end this once and for all, but before he could do anything, a hand shot up and grabbed his leg, stopping him.

"You still can move?" He asked in slight displeasure and annoyance. The robber was sitting there, panting hardly. He gritted his teeth as he gradually stood up. The two of them just stared at each other, none wanted to give way. He then let go of him, as they stepped back, before lunging for each other again.

"I didn't know that Kanda Yuu could be used as a puppet. The Millennium Earl really has his ways of doing things."

"Shut your mouth," Kanda growled as he used his hand to block the robber's attack which was heading for his face. He just grinned in reply.

"Kanda Yuu will definitely not bow down to anyone. No matter how much time has passed, no matter how everything has changed, the only person who will not change is him." He pointed his gun and pulled the trigger, sending a few bullets towards him. Kanda stopped running and hurled himself onto the ground instantly, dodging all of them in seconds. He then got up to his feet quickly, sprinting towards the one who was running away.

"Actually, you are a very emotional person, Kanda. You just do not want to admit it."

"You talk too much."

"Oh really? I shall prove this to you then." Allen's eyes went wide with shock as he felt someone grabbing him by his arm, jabbing him with something at his back. His eyes went wide.

"This time, I will really kill him. One shot will be more than enough to finish him off." The silver-haired teen stiffened at his statement, before staring at the raven-haired teen who was already standing metres away across him. Allen shut his eyes and winced as the robber grabbed his hair, forcing him to submit to him obediently.

"Don't tell me that you have really forgotten everything, Kanda! Everything about this person!" He said as he pushed him forward. Allen's eyes snapped open in shock as his heart gave a hard thump on his chest painfully. What exactly was this stranger talking about? He sounded as though he knew almost everything between the raven-haired teenager and himself. He said as though the two of them actually knew each other all along. Allen slowly peered warily at Kanda who hadn't moved from his position. He couldn't deny that something within him was telling him that he wasn't a complete stranger to him, but he couldn't recall anything in relation to this person.

"What are you talking about?" Kanda answered without showing much of his emotions. The robber just stared at him in slight astonishment, before he faced the sky and roared into laughter.

"This boy is someone whom you are searching all along, someone who is important to you." That pair of dark sapphire eyes widened slightly. Allen's eyes went wider as he held back his breath, wondering whether he was hearing the right things.

_You cannot kill this person._

"So, what is your decision, Kanda? As I thought, you are useless without your sword!" Allen frowned.

_Sword? _

Kanda stayed silent for a moment. He then bent down and took a metal plank which was lying on the ground. He positioned himself and raised his hand with the plank, stepping back, before he pushed his whole body forward and threw the plank straight to the two of them, to their astonishment.

"Your decision is to kill us both? Geez, it's not surprising from you."

"No." The robber blinked. Kanda brushed his fringe away from his face as he smirked in satisfaction.

"That plank...is only heading for you." Allen froze instantly as he saw the plank momentarily passed by his sight by centimetres, before he heard a loud piercing from behind, followed by a horrifying scream ringing through the surrounding. His eyes snapped open, widened in shock and shaking momentarily as he saw beads of blood flying in front of him, feeling something very wet splattering all over his back. The grip at his neck was loosened as the robber collapsed onto the ground. He swallowed nervously, before he turned and stared blankly at the one who had done such a thing. Till now, he could feel the cold feeling of blood trailing down his arm.

"Why...did you do that?" He murmured softly. Kanda walked up to him, silent. The pain at his broken ankle was already forgotten. He couldn't believe that he had actually seen that with his very own eyes.

"Why..." Pieces of memories flashed in his head at the same time.

_Why didn't you save him? _

"Why did you kill him?"

_He is just a human. We are supposed to protect them!_

Tears started to flow out of his eyes, streaming down his face silently. The colour of his eyes began to fade before he finally collapsed, unconscious. The raven-haired teen just stared at him for a moment, and just as he was about to reach down towards him, someone took him up in his arms. Kanda blinked as he looked up at the person who was none other than Lavi.

"Yuu." He said. Kanda did not say anything. The redhead made sure that he secured Allen in his arms, before he turned around, deciding to leave the place. The whole street had finally quieted down, with everyone gathered at the side of an area as the policemen were clearing up the place. Almost all the things around here were crushed and destroyed during the intense battle.

"Let me tell you something before I go, Yuu." Lavi did not turn back even as he spoke to him. He still did not say anything.

"You cannot kill this guy. He is...the only person who can save this world. And you...will eventually be linked to his fate." Kanda just stared at him in silence. Lavi then walked out of this place, as he noticed a car which was parked at the roadside. Seeing Bookman sitting inside, the redhead stepped up as he opened the door and put Allen inside gently. The elder turned himself around as he felt the forehead of the silver-haired teen.

"How is he, JiJi?"

"He's alright for now, but why is his shirt soaked with so much blood?" He asked, staring at Lavi. Lavi just sighed as he turned and looked at the mess and ruins in front of him. He then remembered the words that he told the raven-haired teen.

"Even so, this battle sure lasts rather long."

* * *

"Someone came?" The Earl repeated the words that Lulubell had just said, staring at her meaningfully. The rest of the members were already assembled at the dining table, listening at their conversation with a little tinge of interest. Rhode was leaning against the table, trying to pick out what the adult was talking to the little cat that he adored. The man just cleared his throat and adjusted his spectacles, rubbing his chin as he was deep into thought.

"What happened, Earl?" Tyki asked, noticing his worried gaze. That man rarely showed that kind of expression, and this puzzled him slightly. Now, was he going to see the other side of Earl, the clown who had never made a single mistake in his life since he was borne? The whole situation was somehow making him very anxious. What if the Millennium Earl really made a mistake? He looked down, his heart getting heavier as his human friends flashed in his mind. Why was he even thinking of them? Wasn't he the one who killed them?

"It seems that someone unexpected has appeared and is intending to disrupt my plan. His identity is unknown, but I know that he comes from the same world as us as well. I'm not sure whether he belongs to their side, but as Lulubell said, he attacked Kanda. This...isn't right."

"It sure isn't. Kanda is _once_...their people," Rhode replied calmly, stroking her hair slowly.

"We are just making use of them," David said, grinning. Jasdebi snickered in glee.

"After all...they are the foolish ones who have not realised that there is still one more person who is missing." An evil grin slowly appeared on his face. The main doors slowly opened as the raven-haired teen stood by the doors in view leisurely, his feet crossed. He then turned and peered at the leader in front with an emotionless face, before he stepped forward.

"He still looks so scary. Wait, he looks even scarier than before!" David muttered as he hugged his other partner in slight fright. Kanda stopped at where the Earl was and just stared at him, seemed to be waiting for his next instruction. Unlike the others, he did not intent to greet him because he thought it was simply a waste of his time. To Millennium Earl, he was very glad that he behaved like this, because it wouldn't be him if he did not do that.

"What a rude person," Rhode sighed.

"Have you killed that intruder?" The Earl asked.

"Yes," Kanda replied. That firm yet cold gaze still did not change. Though he was rude, he always did not fail to amaze him nonetheless. The Earl nodded his head, pleased with his work.

"Good. Make sure that no one disrupts our plan. And most importantly..." He slowly stood up and reached towards him, his fingers touching the side of his face gently. It gave him a slight cold and painful feeling from his long nails scratching his skin a little. Still, Kanda's expressionless face did not change. The Earl just stared at him with a rather pained expression.

"Please continue to stay this way. Continue to...look at me. Look at me...forever."

* * *

**Woah long paragraph! **

**Hello minna-san! I know after you have read this chapter, you must be wondering: "What the hell is going on?" This is where the main story plot will basically start. This plot starts at around the 20****th**** century, but it **_**wasn't **_**exactly that the main characters were starting a life completely different from the ones in the DGM manga. Simply said, this story happens after canon, but it is not totally AU as well, so you all will expect some flashbacks of some spoilers of DGM till the Ark series. There is a difference of time, which means going from the past to the future. It is rather similar to KHR and TRC, as I applied the concepts from there. It's hard to explain but I hope all of you get it *smiles*  
**

**Why did the mysterious robber say weird stuffs which Allen could not understand at all? And what has it got to do with Kanda? Look forward to the next chapters! PM me if you are still confused about this ~.~ I will gladly answer all your questions.**

**And please review! All reviews are greatly appreciated!**

**~SingingBlues**


	7. Lost Child

**Chapter 7: Lost Child **

_"Help me!"_

He grimaced as his eyebrows furrowed, his hands starting to twitch uncontrollably.

_Orange flames of fire looked even brighter and beautiful in the night as they continued to burn down and swallow everything in its way. Screams and shouts were heard clearly in the air as thick smoke made its way to the sky above. A cold breeze blew against his skin. His arms slowly moved as he gripped onto the sides of his torn shirt with his hands and hugged himself to prevent his body warmth from escaping._

_"Help me! Please help me! Help me!"_

_Buzzing sounds were heard at his ears. He could not hear their voices at all, only seeing the movement of their lips. The earth continued to shake violently as everything started to collapse and the roads began to break apart. He could see humans falling, one by one. _

He let out a gasp as he breathed heavily, his frown deepened.

_What were they doing? Why were they showing such agonising expressions? He did not like these expressions one bit. He wished that they would stop showing such depressing faces to him. _

_"No! No, help me! Help me! HELP ME!"_

_His eyes narrowed, his right hand hovered over to his left as he pulled his hand which transformed into a large silver sword. The humans' face expressions turned even more horrified, their eyes widening in fear. _

"No...no, don't do that. No..."

_His vision blurred. He did not know what had happened. All he heard was piercing screams and a series of deep slashes and multiple stabs, before he felt splatters of liquid on his face and body, which turned out to be the blood of humans. His hand touched his face, realising that tears were streaming down uncontrollably. _

_Why? Why did this happen? _

"NO!" Allen screamed at the top of his voice as his eyes snapped open. He gasped breathlessly as he stared at the ceiling above him blankly, before he looked around the place he was in which turned out to be his own room. After calming himself down as his breathing was back into normal, he slowly sat up on the bed, noticing Lavi who was lying at the side of his bed, sleeping. Allen peered at his left ankle which was bandaged neatly. He frowned, wondering what had happened earlier on.

_I heard everything you said. I shall grant your wish today._

Silver eyes widened slightly as broken pieces of his memory from yesterday started falling back to its respective places.

_Are you avoiding me...Allen?_

_The robber! _Allen gasped, his body jerking forward as he remembered everything that had happened earlier on. At that time, he was going for work when a robber suddenly held him hostage and dragged him away forcefully. He broke his ankle in the process and couldn't avoid a vending machine flying towards him. Then a raven-haired stranger suddenly appeared and saved him, and before he knew it, everything turned out to be a fierce and raging battle between the two of them. That person defeated the robber in the end, but the way he chose to finish him off was something beyond his imagination–something which he did not want to imagine or recall.

However, there were still questions that were not answered. Firstly, who was this robber? From his observations throughout the whole incident, he wasn't just a normal robber who aimed for money. He knew him even though he couldn't remember him, and he talked something about him that he couldn't understand at all. It was as though he knew him better than the original person, which was himself. That speed and skills of his weren't normal as well. Who was he? How exactly was he related to him?

It was the same for the stranger who saved him. He might have saved him, but why would he save a person whom he did not know at all? His skills were in par with the robber as well. Now that he recalled, if he was not wrong, that robber did addressed him as 'Black Assassin'. He had heard from the people at the bus stop earlier that this Black Assassin might be interrelated with the recent murder. No matter how he looked at it, that person didn't seem as bad as he thought, and that person always gave him a strange and familiar feeling, like this wasn't the first time they had met.

Allen blinked as he pondered deeply. He then stared at the bandaged ankle which surprisingly did not hurt at all. The silver-haired teen tried raising it up, and to his astonishment, he moved his leg with no effort at all. He frowned, getting more perplexed.

"You are awake?" He turned to see Lavi yawning softly as he stared at him with squinted eyes.

"Yes. How long was I knocked out?"

"A day. How are you feeling now?" Lavi asked as he stood up and walked to the nearby table to get him a glass of water. Allen tried moving his arms and shoulders freely, before he turned to the redhead.

"Good. Everything seems okay."

_Help me!_

Silver eyes widened slightly. Allen winced as he clutched his head and crouched down a little. Emerald eyes narrowed as Lavi went to his side and touched his forehead in worry.

"Are you alright?"

"Y-Yeah, I am." Allen gave a smile and pushed his hand away gently. Lavi just nodded his head as he gave him the glass of warm water. Allen thanked him as he took the glass and slowly drank the water down his throat. After he finished, he returned it to Lavi who walked over to the table and put down the empty glass. The bookman junior sat on a small couch at the corner of the room and just watched Allen in silence. Everything seems to be alright for now, but there was something strange which he could not interpret for now.

Allen stared at his hands, and at that particular moment when he heard that pleading shout in his head, he could vaguely see stains of blood on this pair of hands. He shut his eyes and shook his head lightly. He opened his eyes again, seeing nothing on his hands. The silver-haired teen swallowed nervously as he turned to the window, feeling confused and slightly agitated. He did not like this.

"Hey, Allen." Allen turned to face Lavi.

"Yes?"

"Can you...remember anything?" The redhead questioned softly. Allen just stared at him in silence, before something hit him hardly and at that split second, he saw a deep slash on Lavi from his shoulder down to his abdomen, before blood started splattering out crazily. Silver eyes widened in horror and before he knew it, a scream escaped from his mouth as Allen stumbled back and hit the wooden part at the back of the bed hardly.

"Allen! Are you okay, Allen?" Lavi cried out in astonishment as he rushed over to his side, looking at him in concern. Allen gasped breathlessly for a while, before he realised that nothing had happened and the redhead was standing in front of him with no injury at all. His hands began to tremble violently at that terrifying feeling he got when he saw that. It really frightened him out of his wits. Why did such...gruesome images appear in his head at this time? Were they also...part of his memory which he couldn't recover?

"Are you okay, Allen?" Lavi asked once more, seeing that the silver-haired teen had calmed down a little.

"Yes. Thanks for asking." Allen wiped off the sweat at his forehead and smiled. Lavi just stared at him for a moment, before he grinned.

"I see! I'm so happy that you are alright, my friend! Are you feeling hungry? I could go down and grab some bite for you to eat."

"No, it's okay! I'm not really..." Next, a low growl was heard.

"...hungry." The two of them just blinked. Allen let out an awkward laugh several minutes later, breaking the silence between them.

"Well...I'm fine with a sandwich..."

"Okay, sandwich it shall be! I shall go out and buy now. Wait for me!" Allen smiled and waved as the hyper redhead went out of the room with a skip and closed the door behind him. His smile soon faltered as he let out a sigh, pulling his covers aside as he sat by the side of the bed, letting his bare feet touch the cold floor. He grimaced at the cold feeling which stung his skin. The silver-haired teen then slowly stood up on his two feet, noticing that the pain he felt at his ankle was gone. He sat back on the bed and bent down, his hands busily taking off the bandages which smelt of string herbs. As the last roll of bandage was removed, he stared at his ankle which showed no signs of swell at all. His bone seems to be alright as well.

"What is this?" Allen touched his ankle gently with his fingers, fondling with the smooth skin of his foot. He did remember that he injured his ankle really badly, so there was no way it could heal in just a day's time. It was even ridiculous to say that he had supernatural healing ability said in most dramas, but he was just a normal human.

He stood up, walking over to the window. Allen stared at the people walking by in silence.

_Help me!_

His hand trailed along the side of the window in a slow manner. Silver eyes narrowed in response. His left hand twitched slightly as he raised it up in the air, staring at the ground below with a blank look.

_Help me! Help me!_

"...Why?" He muttered softly under his breath. His twitching left hand slowly reached out towards a child who was talking eagerly to his father standing beside him in the middle of the street. Something was gradually pulling him towards this scene he was seeing.

_Allen..._

Something flashed across his head hardly. Allen winced as he closed his eyes and felt his throbbing head, seeing a fuzzy and blurred image of a silver-haired boy who looked exactly like him. He was smiling and calling out to someone in front of him, but there seems to be no one standing ahead of him...only a dark figure which he could not see clearly. That boy was mouthing something at his lips, but he could not hear anything at all.

_...na..._

He frowned as he heard something, but it was still very unclear. He wondered whether there were too many people around when he was speaking, but from the flashing image in his mind, he was sure that no one was there. No one, except him and that dark figure in front of him.

_...na...wa...me..._

He grimaced as he touched his ears, beginning to hear irritating buzzing sounds which were so high-pitched that it felt as though his head was going to explode any moment. Allen gasped as he clutched down slightly. His eyes slowly slid open halfway, staring at the boy who grabbed his father's hand and pulled him away.

_...na...Mana..._

_Mana...wait...me..._

_..na...wait...na..._

_...na...na..._

High-pitched sounds buzzed sharply at his ears all of a sudden. Allen clutched his head and winced.

"Allen?" The silver-haired teen turned around to see Lavi at the door, the bag of food in his hand. He did not know what to do, only giving him a sheepish smile in reply. He then turned to the window, realising that the boy and his father were no longer there. He swallowed, his hand touching his heaving chest as he recalled that particular sentence echoing in his head at that time.

* * *

_"Promise me. That you will not hesitate in killing me if I lose control of myself." _

Kanda opened his eyes, staring at the blank ceiling above him. He then grimaced and attempted to sit up on the bed, gripping on his right arm before touching his stomach which was bandaged neatly. He stared at the faint colour of his blood staining the bandages, before he looked ahead, seeing Mugen placed on the small table just a few metres across him. The raven-haired swordsman threw off the covers as he stood up, walking to the table. He took the sword and carefully unsheathed it, staring at the bright glint from the polished silver blade.

_Don't tell me that you have really forgotten everything, Kanda! Everything about this person!_

He sheathed back his sword into the hilt and placed it back down on the table. Kanda pulled a chair over, wincing slightly in the process as he touched the hurting wound which had not healed fully. He sat down and switched on his laptop, checking the files and mails he received for today. The raven-haired man scanned through his mailbox, reading the messages and noting down whatever information which would be important for his missions.

_He is someone whom you are searching all along, someone who is important to you._

His pen stopped moving as he stared at the paper.

_You cannot kill this person._

Sapphire eyes narrowed darkly. He stood up and shut the laptop hardly, grabbing the piece of paper and his sword before he stepped out of his room. Butlers and maids bowed down at his presence, but he ignored it as he sprinted down the stairs to the basement. As he was about to walk out of the mansion to start his mission, he was stopped by a hand placed on his shoulder in a gentle way. Kanda halted in his footsteps, before he turned around and stared at the man with dark curls.

"Off to do your missions, Kanda?" He asked.

"Tyki Mikk. What I do is none of your business," Kanda replied curtly. Tyki just gave a light chuckle as he walked to his front and faced him, his pair of dark golden eyes twinkling in slight muse.

"Don't be so cold. I just want to talk to a friend, that's all."

Kanda did not say anything. Tyki smiled as he patted his shoulders lightly, leaning a little closer to him as he whispered softly at his ears.

"Why...did you save Allen Walker yesterday?"

That pair of sapphire eyes showed no emotions.

"I'm really...curious. You never spare anyone before. So...why him?"

"I did not spare him. I just did not like anyone touching my prey," Kanda answered coldly.

"I see. Then why are you showing such a perplexed expression that I could not understand right now?" The frown at his forehead deepened as the raven-haired assassin turned to face him, his displeased look on his face demanding him a reason for saying such nonsense. Tyki laughed as he took a few steps back, slightly taken aback by his death glare.

"Are you wasting my time, Tyki?" Kanda hissed lowly.

"No, no, of course not!" Tyki laughed, before his lips formed a thin line and his expression changed completely. "You should know better what to do, Kanda. The Earl will not wait for anyone. Not even you."

Kanda stared at him in silence for a moment. The swordsman gave a snort as he turned and walked out of the mansion, closing the main doors behind him. Tyki leaned against the wall and just stared at the exit where he left, deep into thoughts. His eyes then flickered slightly, as he turned and see Rhode standing a few metres behind him.

"What have the two of you been talking about?" She questioned.

"Nothing. Just general thoughts," Tyki replied with a smile. Rhode just raised her eyebrow, staring at her family member who slipped his gloved hands into the pockets of his pants as he turned and walked away. Her eyes followed his shadow closely, until he disappeared around the back corridor. Golden eyes narrowed as a small devilish smirk slowly made its way to her face.

"Now, it is time to settle the finale with those bunch of idiots who even dared to touch my beloved family."

* * *

Kanda stared at the small photo he was given, before he looked up at the particular businessman who was talking to someone at the bus stop. He took a few steps back, his eyes focusing on his main target closely. The businessman laughed out as he patted the shoulder of the other, before the two of them bid farewell and went separate ways. Noting that it was time to move, Kanda lowered his black cap, ignoring the excited whispers from the ladies who were eyeing at him with lust.

The main target walked around the streets and entered a shopping mall. Making sure that he stayed a few distance away from him, Kanda went in, grimacing slightly at the sudden rush of cold wind from the air conditioners. He spotted the businessman turning left at the first corridor.

He took out the paper again and read the information.

_#08-07_

Knowing that there was an office situated just above the shopping mall and he definitely would go there, Kanda turned and took the stairs instead, sprinting quickly and with ease as he reached the 8th level within a few minutes. He opened the door and looked around, making sure that it was clear.

He walked to the lift lobby, but things weren't going as smooth as he thought. Footsteps echoed through the corridor, and the raven-haired man went back into the staircase, peering through the glass pane as he saw the target striding in together with some people. They flashed their badges to him, and as the businessman nodded his head in a serious expression, he knew who they were instantly.

_Unfortunately, the CIA has been meddling with our affairs again. As far as I want to play with them, I'm afraid that this has to stop, before something bad happens._

"CIA..." He muttered, frowning. Kanda leaned closely to the doors, waiting. As the voices were slowly getting further, he opened the door and walked out quietly, stopping by the edge of the wall as he peered to the side, seeing them entering a room. His hand reached out for his sword at the back and pulled it out, as he was getting ready in his position. After estimating the distance and the time between here and the security camera, Kanda sprinted and leaped up, holding his sword tightly as he gave a swing through the camera, before landing on the floor lightly. Seconds later, the camera broke into clean halves as the useless gadget fell onto the ground. Kanda stood up and slowly approached the room they were in.

The black assassin stopped at the front door as he stared at the door number. It was different from the number which the email had informed him. Kanda hissed under his breath. It wouldn't be long before the security guards discovered that something was wrong here.

Sapphire eyes narrowed. He had to act fast. The swordsman was about to do something when he heard a voice coming from the room itself.

"How is he doing?"

"Same. It has been going on like this for the past eight years."

"What? Nothing has been found out from him? He is the only survivor of that...tragedy! That...monster!"

Kanda stared at the doors, hearing bits of their conversation.

"Sshh! Don't speak so loudly! This is supposed to be top secret, directly approved by the president himself. It is something we cannot speak lightly."

"We must be aware of the Millennium Earl's movements as well. He is trying to find a way to get to him_. _His use will determine our future. If that boy is taken by him, everything would be over."

_That boy? _He wondered. Were they referring to Allen? But why? Why would the CIA and the Millennium Earl want something from someone so insignificant as that beansprout? Everything was so mixed up, confusing him. Something was definitely wrong here.

_Those bunch of idiots do not even know who they are dealing with. Fools. _

"The first stage is successfully finished. Looks like we can proceed to Stage 2 for this experiment."

"Anyway, we have not much time left. We have to hurry." There were some soft shuffles inside the room, before footsteps were heard, coming towards the entrance. The raven-haired swordsman turned and went to the room next door swiftly. The door opened and the group walked out to the corridor, exchanging words among themselves before they parted ways. The businessman remained behind as he turned and walked deeper inside the corridor. Footsteps were getting further, before a soft click was heard and there was nothing.

Kanda opened the door and stepped out. He checked his watch, realising that he had used too much time. He paced quietly across the ground, glancing through the glass panes for the sight of the businessman. As he reached room 07, he spotted the familiar figure inside, flipping some papers in his hands. Kanda smirked and was about to charge in when he stopped, noticing a camera just situated ahead.

He cursed and took his sword out, opening the door.

"Who is it?" The man asked, but no one replied. He stared at the door which crashed onto the wall with a soft thud. He frowned and put down the documents, walking towards the door to check. As he was about to turn and take a look, something flew across his eyes and a loud piercing sound was heard, startling him. He gasped as he turned to where it went, his eyes widened in shock at the security camera which was pierced by a sword.

"Who is it!" He demanded. He turned to the door, astounded to see someone standing there. Kanda walked up and pulled the sword out, sending the camera crashing down onto the ground. He then turned around, seeing the colour of the businessman's face slowly turning into a pale white.

"Y-You...You..."

Sapphire eyes narrowed. Kanda approached him, raising his sword high as he was taking aim. The businessman stammered some incoherent words he couldn't understand, as he stepped back in fright and tripped halfway. The swordsman kicked away the tables which were in his way, focusing on his target who was getting away. As he was forced into a corner, the businessman looked up in fear at the black assassin who was standing in front of him.

"Are...Are you going to eliminate me, just like the others?" He asked.

Kanda did not reply.

"W-Wait. Wait! Why are you doing this? Why?" The businessman pleaded.

"A warning," Kanda answered, pointing the blade at his face. His eyes widened slightly, his arms hugging himself as the businessman tried to hide the trembles controlling his body.

"W-What?" He asked in confusion.

"Didn't you all received the Millennium Earl's notice? If you-the _CIA _or _the government_- do not stop what they are doing, _this-_" Kanda said, pressing the blade dangerously at his throat. " -will go on."

The man gasped breathlessly as he tried speaking, but nothing came out.

"What does the government want from Allen Walker?" He asked.

"It's...It's forbidden to say his...his name..." The businessman cried out in fright as Kanda pressed the blade harder towards his throat, inflicting a small cut on the skin as blood began to trickle down his neck.

_He is a...ultimate weapon. _

"What...does the government want from Allen Walker?" Kanda asked again, this time louder and harsher.

"T-They...They want to c-check whether...whether he was the one who caused that tragedy to happen eight years ago...when the whole district of Shibuya was burnt down to ashes...other than that I...I don't know anymore..." He stuttered. Kanda just stared at him silently, recalling the information that he had heard from this man. Now that he thought about it, his memory only started when he was thirteen, exactly eight years ago. He could not remember anything beyond the age of thirteen. Tyki said that he might have met with a mishap and lost his memory when he was young. His memory...might be connected with this silver-haired teen who appeared at the same time.

"Can...Can you spare me? Please?"

"I'm sorry to say this but...you have to die." There was a loud choking sound from the businessman as Kanda stabbed straight into his stomach. He stiffened for a second, blood foaming at his lips, before he collapsed onto the floor with a thud. The raven-haired man stood up and listened closely, hearing faint footsteps coming this way. He had used up too much time, and the security guards had found out. This room was too far away from the staircase, and there was no time to waste. Kanda opened the windows and looked down, seeing a rather incredible sight of the height from this level directly down to the ground.

"What happened!"

"T-The camera is...sliced into halves!"

"Don't tell me...the Black Assassin is here!"

Kanda cursed under his breath. Making sure that Mugen was secured tightly behind his back, he stepped onto the edge of the window and jumped, his hand aiming for the nearest tree branch. He nearly missed, but managed to catch it as he crashed through the thick canopy of leaves before landing on the ground hardly. He winced as he slowly got up to his feet, looking around. It was lucky that people hardly used this street he was in, or else he would have been discovered.

Kanda grimaced in pain, realising that the wound had re-opened again. He had to go back and change. The swordsman looked up, seeing faces poking out of the opened window as they searched for him. He lowered his cap as he hid inside the shadow of the tree, making sure that they wouldn't notice. When the authorities turned back inside, he turned and made his way out of here, walking past empty streets and entering an alley. He took off the jacket stained with blood and threw it onto the ground.

"Tch," The raven-haired swordsman cursed under his breath for doing such a sloppy job for the first time. This wasn't like him. He cleaned the blood away on his sword, before sheathing back into the hilt and strapped it behind his back. He looked up, seeing grey clouds gradually floating towards his direction, shading some of the sunlight in view.

Sapphire eyes slowly narrowed. It was slightly absurd to even have such a thought, but his curiosity kicked in as he was getting more involved in this issue regarding this mysterious silver-haired teen. Nobody knew where he came from, and he just appeared out of the blue eight years ago. At that time, the whole district of Shibuya was burnt down beyond recognition. There was no remains of explosives, which, only the nuclear bombs could do such a thing. Instead, the government found a dishevelled boy wandering on the burning street with blood spattering all over him. No one knew how he survived. He just walked out of the broken city in one piece.

What was the Millennium Earl trying to say regarding that incident? He remembered some sentences while he was on his way to kill off those bastards. Even that old man sounded cautious and slightly weary while speaking about that beansprout. Kanda leaped over a fence and bypassed an abandoned road not used by anyone for years. He then reached his apartment which was a few metres away. As he took his house keys and was about to open the door, he stopped.

An image flashed in his mind for a second.

He was in a room - a simple room with a bed, a wardrobe, a table and a chair. Everything was so neat and well maintained, that it felt as though no one had ever stepped into this room for a very long time. As he looked around, he saw a large portrait of a clown hanging on the wall.

_What?_

Something was missing.

Someone should be there. That faint, sweet scent of that person was still lingering here...

Sapphire eyes snapped open. Kanda stared at the keys which was about to be inserted into the key hole in slight astonishment. What was that? Why was a room, which he did not even have a single recollection for the past twenty-two years of his life, appear in his mind? And there was something weird. Something which he couldn't explain just by words alone. As he stood there, he could feel a strange yet nostalgic feeling coming to him. It was as though...he had been there.

And someone existed...for that particular room.

* * *

_(Flashback, eight years ago)_

_"Onii-chan! Onii-chan!"_

_Breathless gasps could be heard in the vacant room. Her body shivered in the coldness, her hands struggling in the air as she tried to grab onto anything in this total darkness, with the exception of little moonlight shining in from the very top window. She swallowed dryly, fidgeting at her current position as she concentrated on loosening the tight knots of the ropes securing her to prevent her escape._

_She gave a short cry as her wrist was continuously cut by the rough surface of the ropes. Blood was slowly dripping down onto the floor, gradually forming a small puddle for the past few hours, but thanks to the blood which seeped into the ropes and made the surface more smooth, she was able to loosen it a little. Biting her lip to endure the pain, she kept up with the current speed, hoping to get out of here. _

_"Oi, is that girl okay?"_

_She stopped, hearing voices coming from outside. Her eyes narrowed in anger._

_"She's probably awake. I shall go in and check." A few seconds later, the door opened with a slow creak. Hollow footsteps echoed throughout the room, slowly approaching her. She shut her eyes and pretended to be unconscious, just hoping that he would not find out about the puddle of blood that she left from the struggle._

_"She is still unconscious...though it sounds unlikely because it has already been a few hours."_

_"Just leave her be. There is no way she is able to escape from here." Another voice came out from outside. _

_"You are right. We will definitely not hurt you...when your brother comes here by himself." Footsteps were heard, getting further from her, and the sound of the door closing was heard a few minutes later. She opened her eyes, gritting her teeth in anger. She clenched her hands tightly and continued struggling against the tight ropes. _

_Laughters rang out from outside. It seems that they were having a great time. _

_"I will not let onii-chan get here, no matter what," She muttered softly under her breath. Drops of blood continued to fall and splattered into the puddle with a soft splash. The ropes began to loosen, and she could feel the space between her hands getting slightly bigger, enough to move a little. _

_"Hey, have you heard? There was a big uproar last night. The whole district of Shibuya is burnt into ashes and flames, and the whole cause was because of a boy?"_

_"Oh, that one? Reports say that there was practically nothing left-not even the corpses or remains of the destroyed buildings- except a ten-year-old boy who seems to be wandering on the empty streets alone. He had silver-coloured hair, and his eyes were dark golden in resemblance to the eyes of a hunting wolf! Furthermore, he had blood stains all over his body and hands! Just by staring at him would send shivers down one's spine. It was as though he was a monster in appearance."_

_She stopped struggling as she listened carefully in what they were talking about._

_"Till now, the government has no clues to why the whole city was burnt down so perfectly without anything left behind. Because of this, the CIA has stepped in to help solve this case."_

_Violet eyes widened at the name of the large organisation they mentioned. _

_"They took in the boy and tried to get some clues from him, but it seems that he could not remember anything other than his own name." _

_"Who is he?"_

_"No idea. Only that particular group, Section 67, which is in charge of this case, knows the information. It was supposed to be investigated by our group. If that bastard would listen to us and hand us the case obediently, there is no need to kidnap his own sister at all." _

_She gasped in horror. Wasn't Section 67 her brother's team in the CIA? No wonder they did this to her! They were supposed to be teammates working together in the same organisation! Why would they do this? _

_Suddenly, crashes and loud noises could be heard from outside. Shouts and yells echoed loudly, before thunderous punches and sounds of guns could be heard. Her ears pricked up, and as she caught some of their voices, she could recognise a particular voice belonging to her own beloved brother. A smile appeared on her face, as she continued to loosen the ropes tied between her hands. After a few minutes, she managed to loosen the ropes. As she was about to stand up and escape, the door opened and her brother was standing there._

_"Let's go, Lenalee!" She nodded her head. As she ran towards her brother, she heard a loud bang, before her eyes slowly widened in shock at the stiffened expression of her brother being shot, before he slowly collapsed onto the ground. _

_Violet eyes went wide as she continued to stare at his limp body, her hands slowly trembling on their own. Her quivered lips opened slightly, wanting to shout to her brother to stop acting and get up, but nothing came out. _

_A man appeared at the door. She averted her gaze to him. He had a knife in his hand, and as he raised it up, aiming at her brother, she rushed up without hesitation, her hands reaching towards him in a desperate to stop all of this. _

_"Onii-chan! Onii-chan!" Everything seems to gradually come to a standstill. As she almost touched the hand holding the knife, the hand moved down and there was a loud splatter of blood. Her eyes widened in horror as she slowly stopped in her footsteps, seeing the dark crimson colour of the blood slowly staining his shirt. As she saw his triumphant smirk appearing on the face of the killer, she let out a horrified scream at the top of her voice. _

_(Present)  
_

"What did I ask you?"

There was a hard stab, screams following, and sounds of blood splattering all over the place. The soft screeches of the sword was heard as she pulled out another sword and mercilessly pierced it into his stomach. The man howled in great pain. She just stared at him, with no signs of emotions on her face at all.

"S-Stop...stop, I beg of you. Stop...please..." He pleaded softly, like a dog begging for its master to stop his commands. The whole room was filled with the stench of blood, so revolting that it was starting to make him nauseous. He somehow knew this would happen, but he never expected her to massacre the entire CIA team involved in the kidnapping eight years ago. What frightened him the most was the pair of piercing eyes fixated onto him no matter where he was, as though she was mentally trapping him in a place, not allowing him to look anywhere but her.

"What did I ask you?" Lenalee asked again. She could have finished him off quickly, but she wanted to confirm some matters. About the issues with her brother who was once in charge of a team in CIA, and that incident happening eight years ago which had changed the history of Japan forever.

"Y-You...you said..." He stuttered, finding no energy to answer her. She looked terrifying for a teenager - no, a killer.

"What did you done to my brother!" She snapped loudly.

"We...we killed him out of spitefulness! Because we are supposed the one who were in charge of that case. You know, the incident. We are not supposed to mouth this out publicly. If...if he could just refuse the offer, everything would be alright!" The man blurted out in a fluster. His blood ran cold the moment he saw Lenalee's face darkening in anger, her hand gripping on the swords tightly as she shove them deeper inside his stomach. The pain spread throughout his body and he screamed.

"You did what? You killed my brother out of spitefulness?" Lenalee mouthed out those words that stung her heart hardly. Her brother committed so much to the government, yet all he got in return was betrayal from his colleagues? Now, his pleadings weren't even enough to pay for what he had done! Lenalee hissed as she kicked him accurately at his bleeding wound. He cringed as blood was draining off his face.

All she wanted was to let him have a slow and painful death. He would not live even though paramedics and police were coming in a couple of hours. She had cut the main arteries which induced internal bleeding. In just a few minutes, he would be having breathing difficulties and hyperventaling, before he finally met his death. Even so, this was not enough to dissipate her tormenting pain and burning fury which had last for eight years.

"...though, it was lucky that we did not take up that case," He chuckled.

She frowned, raising her eyebrows.

"Explain," She demanded coldly, pointing her sword at his throat. He stared at her with a dazed look, before he sighed and stared at the bloody floor.

"No one survived."

"What?" The olive-haired girl asked, not catching what he was saying.

"Section 67, which is your brother's team, rushed to the scene to investigate on this matter, but strangely, no one came back to report. Another team was sent out to check and they found the bodies of the members of Section 67. They were..." He paused, hesitant on continuing this conversation. She could see the perturbed expression he had when he was recollecting the past. Lenalee had already sort of knew what had happened.

"Your brother was spared because he received the news that you were kidnapped, and rushed over to save you. It was too bad that his fate was still the same..." He said, a smug look appearing on his face. Violet eyes narrowed in anger.

"Shut up," Lenalee growled as she stepped onto his hand hardly. His eyes widened in horror as he started screaming incorherent words which could not be understood. She frowned, tracing back the things that he had just said earlier on.

"What happened to that boy?"

She saw the man stiffened in response, as though she had mentioned something that she should not brought up. She then remembered that they weren't allowed to mouth out anything regarding that incident. What was this big secret that the CIA had been hiding from everyone? Who was the one who killed everyone and blasted the whole city into pieces?

"You haven't answered my question. Where is he now?" She questioned darkly, pointing the sharp tip of the sword at his throat. A small, thin red line slowly appeared, the blood seeping out of the wound as it trickled down his neck.

He did not answer. The olive-haired girl gritted her teeth and was about to punch him straight at his obscene face when he suddenly replied, a strange yet creepy smile forming at his bruised lips.

"Didn't you know?" He asked in slight surprise and with such calmness.

Lenalee frowned. What tricks were he going to play this time? Seeing no reply from her, that disgusting smile was spreading widely across his cheeks.

"Sometimes I couldn't help but wonder why all of you are so stupid."

"What?" She hissed lowly as a warning to watch out for his way of speaking to her in this kind of situation, but he did not seem to care anymore. Probably it was because he knew he would not be living any longer. He smiled and moved his body forward, his face just a few centimetres from hers. That disgusting face stained with his sneering look irked her completely. She felt like stepping back, but something in his eyes stopped her.

He smirked.

"He is always here with you."

Violet eyes widened.

"Didn't all of you notice? I thought the Black Assassin would have a slight hunch on who he is..." He muttered under raspy breaths, breathing heavily. She could see that he was slowly drifting out of consciousness, but she wasn't going to allow him to do so. Not without explaining fully on what he actually said just now. What had got to do with Kanda? She had no idea, but somehow, she had a feeling that she was going deeper into something she should never investigate.

Then she remembered something extremely important. That thought was enough to send her into moments of shock and disbelief. She wasn't sure, and she did not want to confirm this either.

"Ah." She snapped back to reality by a surprised voice. Lenalee frowned as she turned back to him.

"I forgot. From the way he looks now, there is no way he would do such a terrible deed. I understand. Acting so innocent and naïve, as though he did not know a single thing that happened..." He spoke, a dark glint flashing at his eyes.

"A monster," He spat out. She shivered slightly at the word, remembering that particular period of time when she was locked in and overheard the conversation she wasn't supposed to hear. She knew who he was naming. It was that boy who came out of the raging fire, alive and unscathed.

"Allen Walker."

Her thoughts stopped running, her emotions ran cold.

**xx-xx**

_I did not know that you are so weak, Allen._

_How long are you going to suppress me? How long are you going to feign ignorance, pretending that all of these have happened?_

_How long are you going to be like this, even after so many years of your lifetime has passed? _

_Even though you are supposed to be dead._

He slowly opened his eyes, staring blankly at the ceiling of his room. It was around midnight.

"How long..."

His pair of silver eyes slowly transformed into dark golden orbs, shimmering coldly in the darkness.

"...have I been here?"

* * *

Hi everyone! It has been so long since I touch this story again. Just to remind all of you that this story is semi-AU and has time-travel, which means you will find flashbacks of the DGM chapters appearing in the chapters, and there will be differences of time from the past to the future. Due to my tight school schedule, I will not be updating my stories frequently. If I have the time to write, I will post the chapters up :)

Pls review!


	8. NOTICE

**NOTE**

**This story will be DISCONTINUED and REWRITTEN. The new title of the story will be called 'Lucifer'. The content of the new story will be similar to this, but with darker themes. The style of my writing will be slightly different as well. **

**SingingBlues**


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